My siblings and a place called Duke

Today’s post is going to be almost entirely about my brother and sister, because I am constantly in awe of what amazing people they are.   For those of you who don’t know, I have a younger sister and a younger brother, both who currently live in Durham and attend Duke.  My brother, Paul, is undergrad and my sister, Elise, is getting a masters in global health.  While I am the oldest, I know I can take no credit for their success, I just sit back like everyone else, and am amazed. 

Elise is one of the most fantastic people I know, and obviously my best friend.  She was the maid of honor at my wedding and did such an incredible job that I am still considering renting her out as a professional maid of honor and keeping 20%.  She works as hard, if not harder, than anyone I’ve ever met, and she graduated last year from UVA.  She also spent a summer with me in Rwanda, helping bring drinkable water to my students.  She is one of the most selfless people and has an incredible ability to put others first.  She was accepted to several global public health schools, and we knew she could do well anywhere she decided to go.  But she decided to go to Duke.

Now I will take a moment to let you know, in case you have never met a member of my family, that we LOVE Duke.  We love the campus, we love the traditions, and most of all we love the basketball team.  As children, we knew how to spell Krzyzewski (the head coach’s name) when other little children were reading Spot books.    Our dad went there, as did many members of our extended family, and we just love it.  (And, while I did not make the decision with intent to represent Duke at my wedding, it has to be said that my bridesmaids dresses looked pretty darn Duke blue.) 

So, when Elise decided to go there, we were all thrilled.  Especially Paul, who had completed his first year.

I still remember the day Paul called me and told me he got into Duke.  He worked every single day of high school with one thing in mind, Duke.  And he worked hard his first year at Duke, securing an internship with Vote IQ this past summer.   Then, last week, he was granted one of the biggest honors available to Duke undergrads…Line Monitor.  He went through a rigorous interview and test process in order to prove true knowledge and love of the basketball tradition at Duke and is now in charge of monitoring the students when they are camped out in line for tickets.  He has also secured second row tickets to every home basketball game for the rest of his career at Duke. 

So, here is to my baby brother and sister.  I am so proud of you both and I thought you at least deserved a shout out on my blog!

LOVE your big sister.