Triplets Take Stock; Trio Graduates, Will Stick Together
For Three Sisters, New Degrees Need Not Mean Goodbye
Above, from left, Lindsey, Michelle and Melanie Bettinger, all 21, graduated together from Montgomery College. Next, they plan to attend the Universities at Shady Grove together. Below, which Bettinger is which? From left, this time it's Michelle, Lindsey and Melanie. We think.
(Photos By James M. Thresher -- The Washington Post)
TOOLBOX
   Resize
COMMENT
 Discussion Policy
 CLOSE
Comments that include profanity or personal attacks or other inappropriate comments or material will be removed from the site. Additionally, entries that are unsigned or contain "signatures" by someone other than the actual author will be removed. Finally, we will take steps to block users who violate any of our posting standards, terms of use or privacy policies or any other policies governing this site. Please review the full rules governing commentaries and discussions. You are fully responsible for the content that you post.
Who's Blogging  |
Thursday, May 25, 2006
Lindsey, Melanie and Michelle aren't ashamed to say it: They love the attention.
It comes from people who walk by and whisper, "Are they twins? Triplets?" Or from classmates who ask questions like, "When one of you gets hurt, do the others feel the pain?" (No.) Or when professors ask them to stand next to each other so they can finally figure out who, exactly, is whom.
They are the Bettinger sisters, referred to by almost everybody -- including themselves -- as "the triplets": Lindsey and Melanie, the identical twins, and their fraternal sister, Michelle.
Last week, the trio, 21, who live together in Clarksburg, graduated with nearly identical grade-point averages from Montgomery College in a ceremony on the Rockville campus. The commencement included 600 of their classmates and featured U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings as speaker.
In total, 2,000 students graduated with associate's degrees or certificates from one of the college's three campuses -- Silver Spring/Takoma Park, Rockville and Germantown -- or from workforce education programs.
"It's pretty cool, a big accomplishment," said Melanie, who calls herself the nerd triplet because she studies so much.
The threesome, all of whom majored in general studies at the Germantown campus, often operate as a single entity. At Montgomery College they took the same classes and shared the same books and class materials. They even share a cellphone. (The greeting, with the three speaking in unison, asks callers to leave a message for "the triplets.")
They help each other with homework, drive together everywhere, even work at the same restaurant.
Their identities are so entwined, in fact, that their driver's licenses are in the same single wallet that they share in the same single purse that they also share. They have different bank accounts, though.
"Everyone thinks it's weird, but we share a car so it's like, I don't really like to hold a purse, so why should I?" said Melanie.
As inseparable as they are, the triplets are also competitive -- about everything. Academics, their hair colors, how many miles they run on a treadmill, how deep their tan is. "If one of us is out in the sun, we have to get the same tan," Melanie said. "Just kind of silly stuff."
Jack Curling, their fitness teacher at the community college, said that he often felt as if they were one person.
Mobile
Email