Achieving the Unimaginable: How Maria Assaraf Redefined Her Goals Despite Spinal Condition

Mr. And Mrs. Middaugh, you might as well stick Maria in the closet. She will amount to nothing. One of the dearest causes to my heart is helping children and the family of sick kids, especially those dealing with the same types of challenges I was dealing with as a child. I hope you will join me today in making a difference and being of service to others.

I walked downstairs, I met this most confident, beautiful, loving, charismatic woman that I've ever met. And we started to talk. And we ended up meeting and started dating. And then I wasn't ready to get married again or get really serious, so we took some time off. And then after some time dating, and her dating as well, we ended up getting back together. And this September will be nine years that we have been blissfully married. And she is somebody that I admire so much and love so deeply and respect so, so, so amazingly, because of the inner beauty and power that she has and how she's taken some of her life's challenges and obstacles and has never let them get in her way of creating a masterpiece with her own life and really shows me every day and shows people in our community. She does a lot of philanthropic works, and she just uses her life as a lesson that you can take adversity and turn it into opportunity. Regardless of whether you have a physical, emotional, or spiritual challenge. Every one of us can rise above the obvious. And so why don't you give it up with me for my beautiful wife? Maria wasn't coming yet. Who was?

Come on, step on a stool.

Here we go.

I don't need that. Hi, everybody. Thank you. Can you hear me? Okay. First of all, I want to thank you for all staying and listening to me. And I'm extremely grateful to be here. I'm extremely grateful for my husband John, who has created a lifestyle that lets me live my purpose, and that is to serve others. And for me, that is my significance. So I'm living it. And I'm grateful every day that I get to do that. So thank you. I'd love to share a little personal story with you about turning adversity into opportunity. Imagine being a parent and hearing these words. You might as well stick your child in a closet. She will amount to nothing. You might as well stick your child in a closet. They will amount to nothing. Those are horrifying words. Could you imagine being the parent who's hearing those words about their precious child being told by a doctor that your child will amount to nothing? No chance of a normal life so bad you might as well stick them in a closet? End of story. Can you imagine that? Well, I can. The. Those were the exact words told to my parents by our doctor. I started walking as a normal baby, crawling, then grabbing onto furniture and pulling myself up to stumbling and taking my first steps. Normal progression. No signs of anything going wrong. Not until I was a little over one did things start to change. Out of nowhere, I started crawling again. And my parents noticed a small bump on my lower back. Like any concerned parent, they took me to the doctor. And that's when they were told the bad news. That I had congenital scoliosis, kyphosis. A whole bunch of scary words that described my genetic birth defect, where my spinal cord was being severed by several of my vertebras. The prognosis? I would become paralyzed from the waist down. My parents were shocked. They were scared, see? Saddened. As any parent would be, as any of you would be. And instead of hearing words of encouragement or a plan for the best possible life from the doctor, they heard. Mr. And Mrs. Middaugh, you might as well stick Maria in a closet. She will amount to nothing. Well, lucky for me, my parents didn't buy into that particular doctor's mindset, experiences and very limited beliefs. Instead, they made a decision and commitment to find a solution no matter what. They talked to everyone and anyone they could, sent my story out to every hospital, doctors, specialists, organizations across the country. And sure enough, one day, a progressive orthopedic surgeon called my parents and said he might be able to help. Bringing in the best of the best doctors, specialists, using the latest technologies. That doctor told my parents the good news. Through several years of experimental surgeries, years of physical therapy, every brace, walker and set of crutches, we are confident we can stop Maria's paralysis and she will have a productive future. The bad news? It's going to cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. Hundreds of thousands of dollars. For my working middle class family, it might as well have been a billion dollars. But remember, my parents made a decision and a commitment to find a solution no matter what. Through the help of several organizations and individuals, I was able to have the surgeries and care I needed. Fast forward a few years. It's 1976, and children with physical challenges were not encouraged to attend public school. As a matter of fact, most schools would not take a child with a physical challenge. It was considered an insurance risk. So I attended a school for children with severe mental, behavioral and physical disabilities. Every day I would get on that little yellow bus, head to my special school and. And wonder what on earth I was doing there. I would often cry to my parents and say, I didn't want to go there. I didn't belong there. There was so much more that I wanted to experience. I knew this even at the age of five. My parents knew I didn't belong there. The principal of the school knew I didn't belong there. So again, not accepting the status quo or what was told to my parents where I could or could not go to school, they began to find a solution. A year later, we moved to an area where I could attend public school, eventually graduating from high school and going on to university. Not so bad for someone who was supposed to amount to nothing and living in some closet somewhere. Today, I'm passionate about helping those move past their adversities and see the opportunity that surrounds them. One of the dearest causes to my heart is helping children and the family of sick kids. Especially those dealing with the same types of challenges I was dealing with as a child. I was very lucky to be born to two parents who did whatever it took to make sure I would be okay. I've made a decision and commitment to the spinal research department of Rady's Children's Hospital to help them raise money and awareness to fund the research. So no family will ever have to wonder if their child is getting the best care. So no family would ever have to wonder how they were going to pay for their child's care. I've given back the way all those organizations and individuals gave back to me and my family in our time of need. I hope you will join me today in making a difference and being of service to others. Thank you.

Hey, this is John and if you liked that video, watch the next video because it is packed with things that you can do right now to achieve success way faster than ever before.