In 2017, identical twins Audrey Doering and Gracie Rainsberry, who were separated at birth, met for the first time on a special segment of Good Morning America (GMA). Now, seven years later, they have appeared on the show again after achieving an academic milestone together: becoming valedictorians of their respective high schools. Their special connection and achievements since their reunion have left viewers in happy tears.
Their journey dates back to 2007 when they were in the care of their foster mom in China and were only 15 months old. They were adopted by two different families, leading them to go their separate ways. At the time of their adoption, both were suffering from a heart condition but were operated on by their respective families soon after arriving in the US. It wasn't until 2017 that Audrey's mom, Jennifer, decided to learn about her daughter's past. Through her research, she discovered that her daughter had a twin after finding an old picture of the girls with their foster mother.
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Soon, she started trying to establish contact with the separated twin and found out that the girl was adopted by the Rainsberry family. With the help of Facebook, she approached Gracie's mom and informed her about the whole situation. Not only was her attempt successful, but it also managed to help the twins meet each other for the first time in an emotional reunion hosted by "GMA."
Since their heartwarming reunion in 2017, the twins have grown close and spent a lot of time together. They have had sleepovers and visited each other's families to establish a healthy bond.
The twins were recently spotted celebrating each other's academic excellence by attending their different graduation ceremonies. Both were named valedictorians of their respective classes. Gracie traveled from her home in Washington state to Wisconsin, whereas Audrey has chalked up her plans to watch her sister graduate when the time comes.
The twins were invited to "GMA," where they got emotional discussing their life journey. Audrey said, "Obviously our situation is not like other twins ... but we've just had so many amazing opportunities. We've been able to travel together and experience so many firsts, which has been special." She also added, "I think just the best part is spending time with each other ... and just seeing how we’ve matured but how we’re still very similar."
As the show progressed, the twins discussed their college plans revealing that their choices would take them to opposite sides of the country. Audrey will attend Vanderbilt University in Nashville whereas her sister Gracie will go to Eastern Oregon University in La Grande, where she was recruited to play soccer.
Editor's note: This article was originally published on May 29, 2024. It has since been updated.
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Will your current friends still be with you after seven years?
Professor shares how many years a friendship must last before it'll become lifelong
Think of your best friend. How long have you known them? Growing up, children make friends and say they’ll be best friends forever. That’s where “BFF” came from, for crying out loud. But is the concept of the lifelong friend real? If so, how many years of friendship will have to bloom before a friendship goes the distance? Well, a Dutch study may have the answer to that last question.
Sociologist Gerald Mollenhorst and his team in the Netherlands did extensive research on friendships and made some interesting findings in his surveys and studies. Mollenhorst found that over half of your friendships will “shed” within seven years. However, the relationships that go past the seven-year mark tend to last. This led to the prevailing theory that most friendships lasting more than seven years would endure throughout a person’s lifetime.
In Mollenhorst’s findings, lifelong friendships seem to come down to one thing: reciprocal effort. The primary reason so many friendships form and fade within seven-year cycles has much to do with a person’s ages and life stages. A lot of people lose touch with elementary and high school friends because so many leave home to attend college. Work friends change when someone gets promoted or finds a better job in a different state. Some friends get married and have children, reducing one-on-one time together, and thus a friendship fades. It’s easy to lose friends, but naturally harder to keep them when you’re no longer in proximity.
Some people on Reddit even wonder if lifelong friendships are actually real or just a romanticized thought nowadays. However, older commenters showed that lifelong friendship is still possible:
“I met my friend on the first day of kindergarten. Maybe not the very first day, but within the first week. We were texting each other stupid memes just yesterday. This year we’ll both celebrate our 58th birthdays.”
“My oldest friend and I met when she was just 5 and I was 9. Next-door neighbors. We're now both over 60 and still talk weekly and visit at least twice a year.”
“I’m 55. I’ve just spent a weekend with friends I met 24 and 32 years ago respectively. I’m also still in touch with my penpal in the States. I was 15 when we started writing to each other.”
“My friends (3 of them) go back to my college days in my 20’s that I still talk to a minimum of once a week. I'm in my early 60s now.”
“We ebb and flow. Sometimes many years will pass as we go through different things and phases. Nobody gets buttsore if we aren’t in touch all the time. In our 50s we don’t try and argue or be petty like we did before. But I love them. I don’t need a weekly lunch to know that. I could make a call right now if I needed something. Same with them.”
Maintaining a friendship for life is never guaranteed, but there are ways, psychotherapists say, that can make a friendship last. It’s not easy, but for a friendship to last, both participants need to make room for patience and place greater weight on their similarities than on the differences that may develop over time. Along with that, it’s helpful to be tolerant of large distances and gaps of time between visits, too. It’s not easy, and it requires both people involved to be equally invested to keep the friendship alive and from becoming stagnant.
As tough as it sounds, it is still possible. You may be a fortunate person who can name several friends you’ve kept for over seven years or over seventy years. But if you’re not, every new friendship you make has the same chance and potential of being lifelong.