As the Sacred Heart Greenwich Class of 2022 prepares to say goodbye to their classmates and families this fall, three seniors will also part from their twin siblings.  While senior Justine Hounsell prepares to continue her academics and athletics alongside her twin brother, seniors Isabelle Berkery, Olivia Berkery, and Megan Maloney will live apart from their twins for the first time as they begin their college careers.

Justine looks forward to attending Cornell University with her twin brother Grant, who is a senior at Rye High School.  The upcoming fall will be their first time attending school together since seventh grade.  Justine recalls when her brother accompanied her on a visit to Cornell as a track and field team recruit.

“Even though we are twins, because I was looking to be recruited, we were both going through separate processes at different times and ultimately looking for different things in a school,” Justine said.  “When I was invited to tour the campus at Cornell with one of the track and field coaches, my whole family, including my brother, came and he ended up really liking the school.  I think after that moment, we both knew we wanted to go to Cornell.”

Although Justine will be running track and field and studying at a different undergraduate institution within Cornell, she looks forward to having Grant to rely on during this transition.

“I think Cornell is perfect for us because it is big enough for both of us to do our own thing, but it is reassuring to know that we are always there for each other,” Justine said. 

In August, Isabelle and Olivia will part after six years together at Sacred Heart.  Isabelle will go to Villanova University, and Olivia will attend College of the Holy Cross.  Isabelle particularly enjoys driving to school with Olivia each morning and will miss spending that time with her sister next year.  Olivia will miss sharing a closet with Isabelle and collaborating on schoolwork.

Megan prepares to embark on a new journey at the University of Chicago while her twin brother Andrew will attend Georgetown University.  Although they have not gone to school together since eighth grade, Megan and her brother have a tight bond that they will maintain over the next four years.

“Having a twin is like having a built-in best friend,” Megan said.  “We have always been really close.  He has always been someone I can talk to about anything, and he knows me really well.  There is truly no bond like the one between twins, so I will miss that next year.”

Featured Image by Jacqueline Franco ’23