Macey, Mackenzie, and Madeline were born to parents who had a drug problem and weren’t able to take on the responsibility of caring for a set of triplets, let alone two who were conjoined twins.
So a family of complete strangers stepped in to make them apart of their family and give them the love and care they would need.
Darla and Jeff Garrison were living in California when they decided to adopt the girls after having three boys of their own, Tyler, 20; Matt, 17; and Luke, 16.
“We had no idea what to expect – but they only needed someone who loved them. We got Madeline when she was four days old and Macey and Mackenzie came to us after four weeks,” Darla told Closer.
The Garrisons have fostered several neglected or medically fragile children in the past who had moved on but they always wanted to adopt some girls to add to their family of three boys.
“We’d fallen in love with them. Our boys were so happy to have three sisters,” Darla told Closer.
Now that the girls were in their care, the focus was on making sure that Macey and Mackenzie were successfully separated, according to People. Having conjoined twins is a rare condition that occurs once in every 200,000 live births.
The girls were separated by doctors at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles in 2003.
Two years later, the triplets were adopted and the Garrison’s moved to a farm in Indianola, Iowa. Macey and Mackenzie, who were conjoined at the pelvis and weighed just 2.2 pounds each at birth, now use prosthetics to get around on in place of the leg they once shared.
Despite some physical limitation, the girls live pretty normal lives. They share the same chores, like doing the dishes, as their sister Madeline.
“When they encounter something they can’t do,” Darla told People, “they don t dwell on it too long.”
And it took a lot of work for the girls to get to where they are, as much strength and balance is needed to master a prosthesis.
“The girls have succeeded through hard work and the commitment by their family. Their progression is wonderful and inspiring,” says Children’s Hospital Los Angeles Pediatric Surgeon James Stein, who performed the multi-staged separation in 2003.
Now at 16, the girls are enthusiastic, full of life, and are living happy lives in a loving home with parents and brothers who love them a lot.
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