THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, June 20, 1996 TAG: 9606180118
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 10 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JOAN C. STANUS, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: 72 lines
They don't look alike, but, inside, twin sisters Rena Nance and Retta Quinn are about as close as you can get.
Outwardly, however, they seem to be opposites.
Retta is the quiet, more cautious one who warms up to people only after first getting to know them. She's the family chef, the musician who spends hours playing the piano to relax.
Rena is outgoing, talkative, inclined to speak her mind impulsively. This twin never cooks and finds relaxation by curling up with a good book.
Although seemingly different, when it comes to the big decisions in life, the two sisters invariably choose alike. Born under Gemini, the astrological sign for twins, they're more halves of a whole than two separate beings.
They married within a year of each other, serving as each other's maid of honor. They had their first child - both daughters - within months of each other. They built their homes on the same block, at about the same time.
They've also stayed put for the last 46 years, living in facing brick homes in Norfolk's Bayview section.
In fact, the twins never have lived more than a mile apart from each other. Spiritually, they've resided much closer.
Neighbors say the families are so close that a path has been worn across the street from one door to the other.
They've sung in the church choir together, played in the same bridge clubs, traveled together. Retta headed their daughters' Brownie troop; Rena assisted. They've volunteered together, helping with Meals on Wheels, garden club projects and church activities.
When shopping, it's not uncommon for the sisters to beeline for the same merchandise. They often end up coming home with the same dress, though most times in different colors.
Stranger still, for three years, the sisters sent identical birthday cards to each other.
On June 14, they celebrated their 70th birthdays. As usual, it was together.
They left behind Rena's husband (Retta is a widow), their daughters, and grandchildren, including a 9-year-old granddaughter apiece, and went on a trip to Missouri and Niagara Falls.
Retta drove; Rena navigated.
``I think there really is an unusual bond between us because we're twins,'' Rena said. ``We've always been very close.''
There's no sibling rivalry in this relationship. Unlike many sisters, Rena and Retta have quarreled only once in their lives.
Not surprisingly, it had to do with a man.
As teenagers, they were cleaning house one afternoon when the doorbell rang. It was the paperboy, the guy Retta eventually would marry.
``Neither one of us wanted to answer it because we looked so horrible,'' Rena recalled.
``Other than that we've never argued,'' Retta said. ``We've never minded sharing with each other.''
They did get sick of being dressed as twins, however. In the ninth grade, they took a stand. No longer would would they wear the same outfit at the same time, they told their mother.
``We got tired of people saying, `Ah, look at the twins,' '' Rena recalled. ``We're alike, but we're different.''
Although eager for separate identities, the sisters never really went their own ways. They were just too close.
``We're each other's sounding board,'' Retta said.
Her twin added:
``We couldn't get along without the other.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by JIM WALKER
Twins Rena Nance, left, and Retta Quinn are so close that neighbors
say a path has been worn across the street from one door to the
other.
Rena, left, and Retta in high school caps and gowns in 1944. by CNB