Smiles: Brian, Tucker, and Tia Gardner share jokes and play together. Melanie Stetson Freeman

Rick plays with his sister Lynden as their mom, Beverly, looks on. Melanie Stetson Freeman

In the kitchen, children gather when Beverly passes out treats. Photos by Melanie Stetson Freeman - staff

Like father, like son: Chip Gardner, one of 12 multiracial children adopted by Sam Gardner and his wife, Beverly, 'helps' his dad mow the lawn outside their home in Birmingham, Ala. Photos by Melanie Stetson Freeman - staff

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'Family is everything'

An Alabama couple adopted 12 children, nine of whom have special needs.

from the June 16, 2008 edition

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Staff photographer Melanie Stetson Freeman visited the Gardner family recently at their Alabama home.

The Gardners' six-bedroom, two-story home is surprisingly calm and amazingly clean. All 13 children living at home, ranging in age from 6 to 28, have chores.

Brian, who is 9, has become little Lynden's constant companion. Since she can't walk, he pushes her around in her stroller and entertains her with rub-on tattoos.

Tony, 16, helps care for Johnny, 12, and Destin, 14, changing their diapers and helping to feed them. Tony carries Johnny wherever he needs to go – even though they're almost the same size.

Bev home-schools eight of the children. "They weren't getting what they needed and were getting left behind," she explains. "I know what my kids need. I know how slow they go. We can make things the way they can do the best, and they've done well."

She had doubts about home-schooling in the beginning. "I never thought I could do it. But it's actually been easier. Sending them to public school was harder. This is a good fit for us."

Support from many sources

Supporting such a large family is challenging – especially with healthcare costs and the special medical equipment some of the children require. Sam has worked as a shoe salesman at a local department store for 30 years.

The family receives subsidies from the state for the most severely challenged kids, and the community helps.

A local company has bought the children's Christmas presents since 2001. A church group renovated the family's kitchen and dining room.

"A lot of people [who help] say: 'We do this because we can't do what you're doing, so we want to give back in some way,' " Bev says.

"Having one [child] with a disability is a lot of work," says Rod White, director of a baseball league for special-needs children and adults – where the Gardner family has its own team.

"Having a family of children with disabilities is something I can't comprehend," he adds. "And look at [Bev]. She always has a smile on her face. Just the fact that she would take all these kids in, kids that nobody else wanted, and make them her own, to me just says it all."

"I've always pulled for the underdog," Sam says. "We take in kids that would've had a bad family life, and we can see to it that they don't, and that they have a happy family. Family is everything."

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