The physician's diagnosis was devastating. Six-year-old Becky Landy of Rochester, New York, born with spina bifada-a serious condition that results when the spinal column doesn't form properly-had developed scar tissue on her back, which was pulling on her spinal cord. The only way to save her life, concluded her surgeon, was to sever her spinal cord, which would mean she would never walk again. Becky's parents, Anita and Doug Landy, gave their consent to proceed with the surgery.

"The doctor had never done this procedure before," remembers Anita, "and wouldn't leave her bedside until she awoke." When Becky regained consciousness, she remarked that she couldn't feel her legs

The surgeon began to cry. "Becky," said Anita, "you can move your legs. All you have to do is take your arms and move your legs to wherever you want them to go."

"Oh, okay," said Becky, feeling better. She tried it, and it worked.

Now 13, Becky reads and writes and is, as her mother says, a genuinely happy, content, and positive kid. "When people first see her," notes Anita, "they may feel sorry for her. But once they spend time with her, they start looking to her to teach them about life, values, and strength."

Anita and Doug have learned about the value of every person from their remarkable family, which includes seven children, ranging in ages from 10 to 28. Their two oldest children were born from previous marriages. The remaining five have disabilities and live at home, and the youngest three, including Becky, have spina bifada and were adopted.

"We saw a need," explains Anita of their decision to adopt disabled children. She and Doug wanted more children, and had no qualms about taking in kids with physical challenges. Anita is a special education teacher, while Doug is a physician, and after caring for their biological children Noah and Adam-one born with a chronic lung disease and the other who suffered a stroke-they felt up to the task.

"Many people just do not feel capable of taking care of their disabled children," notes Anita. "We did not want Jewish children raised in non-Jewish homes if we could help."

On any given day, the Landys travel in their custombuilt white bus, which carries their family, three wheelchairs, a ventilator, and a service dog named Magic. Nurses and therapists visit their home regularly to assist the children. Anita coordinates the many doctors' appointments, health insurance claims, and ordering medical equipment. Their life proceeds at a hectic pace, but Doug and Anita wouldn't have it any other way.

"Our kids help us appreciate tzelem Elokim," notes Anita. "Somehow, when you have a child with a disability or a life-threatening illness, the goodness of the child's soul shines bright. Each child brings something else that God wants us to learn."

Their son, Noah, for example, who was oxygen dependent for close to nine years, has taught them about persisting while accepting limitations. "Noah, born with bad lungs, would try to do everything he saw his schoolmates doing," says Doug. "Over time, he was able to accept that some things were simply beyond him. And he has learned, albeit slowly, that he can tolerate more than he thought he could." Now, at 21, Noah is completing his veterinary technician studies

Not everyone knows how to respond to a disabled child, and sadly many of the Landy children discovered this at an early age. Stephanie, 10, who has endured multiple brain surgeries and suffers from epilepsy and a form of autism, generally gets the cold shoulder from kids her age. Noah, who suffers from Asperger Syndrome-a type of autism-was taunted by children at synagogue when he was 11, and to this day avoids going there

It breaks Anita's heart when others don't appreciate that everyone, regardless of physical limits or emotional handicaps, is created in God's image. "People don't understand," she notes, "that people are different."

The Landys don't live an easy life, but Anita and Doug have high hopes for their family's future, and see their children as a special blessing. "We have learned to value others for what they are," remarks Anita. "We have learned that adversity is only an adverse thing when you refuse to seize the opportunity to look for God's hidden lesson, when you refuse to find the good, and when you refuse to grow.

"It's hard to teach your children these things. But by blessing us with our particular family, God has made that job easy."