This Valentine’s Day, I’m celebrating a different kind of love, the kind built over a lifetime and strengthened through service.
Some people join Team Rubicon to serve their communities. Some join looking for purpose, connection, or a way to give back.
I joined TR after an invitation from my twin sister, Nichole Pinet. A cardiac nurse at the time, she was looking for an organization that she could volunteer with that gave her the ability to serve local communities. She joined Team Rubicon in July of 2023, then asked me to join too, so that we could serve together. I became a Greyshirt soon after she did.
From the very beginning, our lives have been intertwined. Matching childhood photos, shared milestones, inside jokes, and an unspoken language that only twins can have. As we grew older, our paths took different turns, but our values never drifted far apart. Service, compassion, resilience, and showing up when it matters most were always part of who we are.
Wearing the grey shirt together has been something truly special. It’s not just about responding to disasters, cutting trees, clearing debris, or helping communities begin again. It’s about being twin sisters volunteering together. Standing shoulder to shoulder with someone who knows you without explanation. Someone who can read your body language when the day is long, who knows when you need a laugh, a break, or a quiet moment to reset.
Serving alongside my twin means trust comes naturally. As twin sisters volunteering together, communication doesn’t need to be perfect; it just works. We hold each other accountable, lift each other up, and remind one another why we’re here when the work is hard and the days feel heavy. In the middle of chaos, there’s comfort in knowing the person next to you has always had your back.
Our paths in TR don’t look the same; she’s a sawyer, and my role definitely looks more command and general staff, or C&G, oriented. It hasn’t stopped us from deploying together, serving communities together, or leading metros alongside each other, though. At the end of the day, she gets me, and I get her, and we can share this work and its impact with very few words. Trying to explain my heart for TR to someone who hasn’t drunk the kool-aid can be a challenge. With her, I don’t have to. She already knows.
Team Rubicon often talks about finding purpose, about belonging, and about family. I’ve found all of that here. I’ve found a place where my sister and I can serve something bigger than ourselves, together, while still honoring the bond we’ve shared our entire lives.
This Valentine’s Day, I’m grateful for the love of family, the strength of community, and the privilege of serving in grey beside someone who has walked every chapter of life with me, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Built to serve.
Built on trust.
Built together.
