Siblings Graduate Together In Same USMC Company
by U.S. Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Michelle Brudnicki
February 5, 2021

Lazaro and Mayra Cisneros share the unique bond of brother and sister. Now, they share yet another unique bond ... as U.S. Marines.

Lazaro and Mayra joined together to help provide for their family. Odd jobs weren’t going to be enough to sustain the family and pay for Mayra to go to medical school, so when given the opportunity to try to earn the title Marine, the siblings decided to take the challenge.

“At first we kept enlisting a secret from our father,” said Mayra. “He wanted to protect us like any other dad.”

Though they were hesitant at first, their parents emphasized and reminded the siblings to put as much into it as they could when they arrived at the island to begin training.

The siblings were assigned to the gender-integrated Hotel Company, 2nd Recruit Training Battalion together and began training on October 19, 2020. They are in the same series, and therefore conduct most training events together.

As the siblings were assigned to different platoons and due to the demanding schedule of recruit training, there were no opportunities for the siblings to converse. However, they managed to stay connected in the brief moments their platoons crossed paths. They were able to communicate with winks, nods and other exchanges that are unique to siblings.

“We don’t need to speak … we can speak without words,” said Mayra.

“It’s a sibling thing,” Lazaro added.

Although the siblings have been together most of their lives, they’ll eventually part ways as they proceed on their Marine Corps journey. Mayra is assigned to serve in the motor transportation field and will attend her occupational school in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. Lazaro is still awaiting his future job assignment.

Regardless of location, both will continue to be connected as brother and sister in blood and arms.

“Not everyone knows what it’s like to go through something like boot camp,” said Mayra. “We’ll both always have this connection and understanding that most people don’t have with each other.”

“I know that we both have improved and gained a lot from this experience,” said Lazaro. “It’s done and we did it together.”

The siblings graduated recruit training on January 29, 2021.

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