Twins reunited at Shaw Published April 13, 2006 By Tech. Sgt. Kevin Williams 20th Fighter Wing Public Affairs SHAW AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. -- Twins obviously have a lot in common: same parents and birthdays. But for Senior Airmen Patricia Maghanoy and Aurelia Garza, 20th Component Maintenance Squadron aerospace propulsion journeymen, the similarities don't end there. They also share the same career field, squadron and flight. Born Jan. 30, 1984 in Yakima, Wash., the twins began their Air Force career together Jan. 18, 2002. "They didn't know (we were twins) until the second day of basic training," said Airman Maghanoy. "I was in one bay and she was in the other." "They called one of us and we both came," said Airman Garza. They also went through the same technical training with only one difference: Airman Maghanoy was trained on Pratt and Whitney engines while Airman Garza was trained on General Electric engines. They graduated the same day. After graduation, Airman Garza came to Shaw and Airman Maghanoy was assigned to Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Airman Maghanoy's arrival here Dec. 8 with her husband, Kimo, who she met at Edwards, happened by pure chance. "They changed my shop at Edwards to civilians. They are phasing out all the military," said Airman Maghanoy. "They gave me a list (of assignments) and I chose Shaw. I wanted to come back to the East Coast." "Airman Garza was quite excited," said Master Sgt. Gena Harris, 20th CMS jet engine intermediate maintenance assistant section chief. "The rest of us knew if Airman Maghanoy was nearly as good as her sister, we wanted her in the shop. Both Airmen have been wonderful to work with." Airman Maghanoy's arrival caused a little confusion among her new coworkers. "They stared a lot," said Airman Garza. "She walked in and the whole shop gathered and stared, even though most of them knew she was coming." "It was a lot easier for me to get along with everybody else because they all felt like they knew me already," said Airman Maghanoy. "It didn't take long for their coworkers to accept having both Airmen working in the section," said Sgt. Harris. "The girls work on different crews so they are not working side by side." Even though they are fraternal twins, people still confuse them for each other. "They confuse me all the time (with my sister)," said Airman Garza. "They will ask why I don't say hi to them and I say, 'because I don't know you.'" Another similarity between the twins is career progression -- they were both selected to staff sergeant their first time testing. They are separated by only one line number. "Their personalities are very similar. However, Aurelia seems to be more spontaneous while Patricia appears more cautious. They are both bubbly and happy people for the most part," said Sgt. Harris. "Their work ethic, professionalism and dedication are exemplary. They truly set the example for their peers to follow. We look forward to their promotions and them stepping into bigger and better positions in our work center." The similarities between Airmen Maghanoy and Garza don't end with their jobs. They said they share the same interests in playing tennis and soccer, music and cooking Mexican food. "We grew up in a really small town so it was kind of hard to get away from each other," said Airman Garza. "And now we're back together again," said Airman Maghanoy.