Girl. Lori Burnell. Played soccer, volleyball and ran track at Beekmantown Central School.

Boy. Matt Sames. Attended Plattsburgh High School and played football, basketball and baseball.

Though at rival schools, girl and boy knew of each other but "met" the summer of 1990 at Woodstock's in Plattsburgh. Matt, an English major, had graduated from Le Moyne College in Syracuse. Lori was majoring in economics at St. Michael's College in Winooski.

They dated a bit that summer and the next. They married in 1997. Their wedding was at St. Mary's of the Lake Church on Cumberland Head. Their reception was at the Elks Club on Cumberland Avenue in Plattsburgh.

"Our wedding was like the most special day," Lori said. "All of our friends and family were together under one roof. We thought the whole day, we would never again have all these people who are so special in our lives together."

Matt's career took them to Buffalo, where their first daughter, Madison, was born in 1999. When she was 7 months old, the Sameses relocated from Buffalo to Clifton Park as a result of another transfer. Lori continued to telecommute for IDX, a health-care computer-software company.

When second daughter, Reagan was born in 2001, Lori decided to become a stay-at-home mom. Three years later, daughter number three, Hannah, was born.

"She was a completely healthy girl and met all her infant milestones," Lori said. "We had no health concerns."

MYSTERY CONDITION

When she was 2 and a half, Hannah's left arch rolled inward. Her parents took her to an orthopedist and podiatrist, who both pronounced the child fine. By the time Hannah was 3, both arches rolled inward and were collapsing.

"Her gait had become awkward."

Hannah's pediatrist put her through a rigorous physical exam and concluded, "That's just Hannah."

Lori's sister-in-law, Sarah, an occupational therapist, thought differently when she visited from California.

"She was very upset with Hannah's gait and thought she had a neuro-muscular problem going on."

On her cell phone, Sarah videoed Hannah walking and running and showed it to a physical-therapist colleague, who said Hannah's gait was like a child with muscular dystrophy. Hannah needed a neurological workup.