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Parris Island
These sisters all graduated from Marine Corps recruit training together
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The Valentine sisters and the Placido Jaramillo sisters all graduated Marine Corps recruit training at Parris Island in South Carolina together.
Amber and Ashley Valentine, 22 and 19, decided to enlist to honor their grandfather's legacy of military service. The two sisters from Manassas, Virginia. waited for each other to clear the enlistment process so they could attend recruit training together -- and it proved a wise decision.
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“I went through a moment during first phase where I received some bad news in a letter, and she was there to be a shoulder for me to lean on,” Amber said of her sister.
Ashley suffered a hip fracture prior to graduation and will stay behind on Parris Island while her sister moves on to Marine Combat Training.
“I know she’s going to be OK,” Ashley said of her sister. “She’s always been independent and I know she’s going to succeed in her career.”
Maria, Vanessa and Melissa Placido Jaramillo planned to join the military together from childhood. The twins, Melissa and Vanessa, 22, and Maria, 21, grew up together in Las Vegas and described their connection as an "unbreakable bond."
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When it came to Parris Island, friendly competition between the sisters pushed them forward.
“When one of us is lacking and the other is strong in that area, we always push each other to become to best we can be,” Melissa said.
The Marine Corps will likely take the two sets of sisters in different directions, but the support system will remain.
“We are always together, but we know how to live separately," Maria said. "I know that my sisters will always be there for me, even when they are not physically with me.”
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Reach Elizabeth Howe on Twitter @ECBHowe.
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