PHOTO BY Sadie Quarrier / MPW.59 PHOTO BY Sadie Quarrier / MPW.59
  • Strong in their Love
  • By Sadie Quarrier, National Geographic Magazine
  • The 59th Missouri Photo Workshop / Chillicothe, Mo.
  • Most wouldn’t consider the Schlegel family’s life easy…seven kids ages 2-13, two with Brittle Bone Disease (Osteogenesis imperfecta, OI), another with ADHD and one with learning and hearing disabilities. Mihaley, 5, has the more severe case of OI, resulting in 65 fractures and steel rod implants in her legs. Typical of the disease, her teeth crumble like chalk and those that are left are capped in silver. She has a port-a-cath implanted in her chest and every nine weeks she and her brother receive Pamidronate which costs $3,000 a dose. Despite all of this, her irresistible charm and baby-doll looks won her the Tiny Little Miss Missouri crown this past year.

    The stress of towering hospital bills, living in cramped quarters in a house that they are gutting and rebuilding, and juggling the demanding needs of their kids should be enough to crack any family. But Michelle and Eldon shrug off these challenges and choose instead to focus on infusing and surrounding their kids with intense love and support.

    Michelle and Eldon Schlegel, with their oldest daughter, Madeline, 11, take a break from working on the house they’re renovating. They just moved to Chillicothe, Missouri, in May and the family of nine is currently living in tight quarters on the second floor while construction is underway.

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