Extended Family

First-year Ashley Graybill decided to visit Eastern in November 2008. When she learned that her cousins, first-years Shannon Graybill and Sam Weaver, were also going to attend Eastern the next year, she was ecstatic.

“It was so awesome when we all got our acceptance letters,” Ashley Graybill said.
These three girls all hail from Lancaster County, and live within five minutes of each other. For them, choosing Eastern was not that hard.

“It was a good distance from home, and I really wanted to go to a small Christian school,” Shannon Graybill said.

But these cousins share more than their school choice: They also play sports.

Ashley Graybill is on the women’s soccer team, Shannon Graybill is on the field hockey team and Weaver plans to be on the women’s basketball team this winter.

All three have been playing their respective sports since they were young and would love to continue for their collegiate career.

“I go to all their games–home ones, at least,” Weaver said.

For some, living on the same campus as relatives may be strange. However, the Graybill cousins embrace each others’ presence and even go to meals together.

“We hang out all the time,” Shannon Graybill said.

“We’re always together,” Weaver said. “Having (Ashley and Shannon) here is a bonus.”
Ashley Graybill summed it up accurately: “We all have our separate friends, but we still see each other,” she said.

Ashley Graybill is an exercise science major, Weaver is an elementary education major and Shannon Graybill is in exploratory studies.
Ashley and Shannon Graybill both live in Gough while Weaver lives across campus in Sparrowk.

[Reporter’s Note: While talking to the Graybill cousins, I learned that they have another cousin, Shirah Graybill, who currently goes to Penn State Berks–and plays women’s lacrosse.]