Double blessing times two at CAHS

Double blessing times two at CAHS

    Central Aroostook High School has been fortunate with their graduating Class of 2010. While many schools have students that are twins, Mars Hill was blessed with two sets of twins in the class of 2010, and the twins are the top four students in the class. Valedictorian Brianna Hartin was just a fraction of a point ahead of her identical twin sister Chelsea, who was the Salutatorian. First Honor Essayist Ethan Stiles was less than a point over his fraternal twin brother Garrett, the Second Honor Essayist.

 

    Posed for a picture at the graduation of twins Brianna and Chelsea at Central Aroostook High School on Friday, June 11, 2010.  Pictured are, from the left, mom Paula, Chelsea, older sister and honorary “triplet” Courtney Hartin Wetzel, Brianna, and dad Stan.

 

    Posed for a graduation photo of twins Ethan and Garrett at Central Aroostook High School on Friday, June 11, 2010.  Pictured are, from the left, mom Shelby, Ethan, Garrett, and dad Jeb.

    While most folks have trouble telling the Hartin twins apart, they are very willing to correct those that get them mixed up. Born a minute apart in Houlton on March 17, 1992 to Stan and Paula Hartin, the girls came home to join their three-year-old sister Courtney. When born, they were within three ounces of each other in weight and one quarter inch of each other in length. Not much has changed over the years, although Chelsea is now about one inch taller than her sister. While they do part their hair on opposite sides, they are both right handed. And although they have their own bedrooms, they still end up sleeping in the same bed most nights.
    While most new parents of identical twins would have worried that they might “mix up” the babies, the Hartins were lucky as Brianna has a small birthmark on her leg, so they could always “check to be sure” they had them right.
    The Hartin twins grew up in southern Aroostook County, attending grades 1-5 at the Southern Aroostook School. They then attended Greater Houlton Christian Academy from grades 6-9. When their folks moved to Mars Hill, the girls started attending CAHS for their sophomore year.
    They were welcomed into the community and school from the start, and have made many, many friends. They will always think of Mars Hill as home and will fondly remember all the little quirks that are part of small-town living. Things like everyone being related or having the same last name even if not related! In their combined speech at graduation (what else would anyone expect), they thanked their teachers, friends and family with helping with their success, but mostly credited “their Creator, their Savior and best friend, Jesus Christ” for guiding them.
    The girls’ dad, Stan, is the director of field operations for Maine Public Service and their mom, Paula, is an ER nurse at the Houlton Regional Hospital and works part-time at TAMC. Their sister, Courtney Hartin Wetzel, is one of their “best friends”, as well as being their “mother”, counselor, triplet, and fashion consultant. Their grandparents are Ronald and Patricia Hartin and Robert and Jeanette Sherman, all of Island Falls.
    The Hartin twins plan on attending Southern Adventist University in Tennessee to study premedical biology, with the intention of becoming doctors. Brianna is thinking of working in an emergency room, while Chelsea is leaning more toward cardiology.
    The Stiles boys — Ethan and Garrett — have been quite different from the time they were born, about a minute apart, on May 29, 1991 to Jeb and Shelby Stiles. Although they were within 4 ounces of each other in weight, Garrett was one inch longer, and is a couple of inches taller than his “older” brother today.
    Anyone meeting them today might think they were brothers, but wouldn’t pick them out as twins. They have different friends and interests, with Ethan on the ski team and Garrett playing basketball and baseball. Ethan worked hard in elementary and middle school to learn to deal with his Dyslexia. Finishing third in his class shows what a determined young man he is.
    Their dad, Jeb, works as a mechanic at Nortrac  in Houlton, and their mom, Shelby, is the nurse manager at the Outpatient Specialty Clinic at Houlton Regional Hospital. They have an older brother, Lucas – an engineer in the Bangor area, and a younger brother Joe. Their grandparents are Graydon and Sarah Shorey of Mars Hill, Fred and Tina Case of Rhode Island, and Roberta and Merrill Stiles of Bridgewater.
    Ethan plans to attend the University of Maine at Orono to study biology and pre-med and then plans to attend Boston University to study pathology. Garrett plans to attend Husson University to study pre-chemistry and pharmacy, on his way to becoming a pharmacist.
    This talented foursome has shown that they can do what it takes to succeed, and we expect them to continue this attitude in their college careers. Watch out world, here the double dynamic duo comes!