“My name is Madison McMillan. I’m in the EMR program at Portage College.” 

“My name is Kierra McMillan. I’m in the EMR program at Portage College.”

Kierra and Madison McMillan, twin sisters from Cold Lake, have enjoyed learning at Portage College in the Emergency Medical Responder program.

The 20-year-old students from Cold Lake are identical twins and are both about to complete the 20-week Emergency Medical Responder program at Portage College.

Madison – Maddie to her friends – is also in her second year of Portage College’s Practical Nurse Diploma program. Standing side by side, the sisters are almost indistinguishable – especially in the matching Portage College medical responder student uniforms. One is slightly taller, and one has a little lighter hair colour, both have played on the Portage College women’s outdoor soccer team – doubling-down further with each playing midfield positions. They both share a dorm room at the college’s Lac La Biche campus, both wear matching cowboy-styled work boots, both like to play a little volleyball in the college gym, and both couldn’t be more excited about where their career choices could take them.

“When I got out of high school, I wanted to be a nurse, to be in the medical field,” said Madison, explaining that the COVID-19 global pandemic that disrupted those high school years played a big part in her post-secondary plan. “During COVID, we saw the pressures put on nurses … and maybe they were underappreciated … so I saw a need to get to the medical field.”

After registering for the Practical Nurse program at Portage, Maddie decided to expand her health and wellness learning by applying for the Emergency Medical Responder program.

“My goal is to be in the medical field – so I took the program to have a better understanding of more areas in that field,” Maddie said. “I’m happy it was here for me to take.”

It didn’t take much to convince Kierra to follow her sister.

“I’m also interested in health care … and being from Cold Lake, Portage is the closer option for schooling,” said Kierra, adding that her sister’s reviews of her college experience helped to make the decision easier. “She has been going here for a little bit and has always said the environment here was really nice and the staff are super helpful and accommodating for everyone.”

Kierra is now looking into the college’s Primary Care Paramedic program as a possible next step on her career and education path.

The twins will complete their EMR training with practicum placements at the end of January, both working with a Red Deer ambulance crew. As they discuss the placements, the sisters can get into a good-natured discussion about the amount of time and hourly breakdowns of their placement shifts; one is working two 12-hour shifts, while the other has three, eight-hour shifts. And although the end result is identical, time has always been a hot topic for the twins … since Kierra joined the world a full minute ahead of Madison.

“You might be taller than I am … but I’ll always be older than you,” Kierra said, re-hashing a well-used line.

Gentle ribbing aside, the sisters say that having family in the area, and each other in the college, has been a comfort during their schooling.

“If I’m having a rough time, she is there with me,” Maddie said, with her sister finishing the sentiment: “It gives you the extra help, and if you are down mentally, you have your sister or brother or a family member to help with everything.  Kind of like a rock for you, and a built-in study buddy.”

Good sports

The learning curve for the twins hasn’t only been in the classrooms. Maddie and Kierra played last season with the Portage College women’s soccer team, signing up during the college’s Orientation Day event last August. Both avid volleyball players, the sisters however had no formal soccer training. But like their schooling plans – they were ready to learn.

“Did we know anything about soccer? Nope. Not at all,” said Kierra with a big grin; her sister standing beside her completing the answer with a full head shake and finishing the sentence: “… but we had a lot of fun. It was another great experience.”

Kierra and Madison McMillan have some fun during the Voyageur women's soccer team photo shoot. The twin sisters from Cold Lake, have enjoyed learning and playing together at Portage College.

While the soccer team didn’t finish the season with any wins, Maddie and Kierra found many positives from the shared experience. They also found a new group of friends. Admitting to being a little on the shy side, the sisters said they were welcomed easily onto the team.

“From the team, we have friends we can come up to and hang out with. In the future, if I run into them, I can say, ‘Hey you want to get some food?’  or hang out with them,” Kierra said, adding that the team staff and support from the community made it fun. “If we didn’t take this experience and not play on a school sport, we may not have had those additional experiences outside of the program.  The friends you make in college can be lifelong friends.”

VIDEO:

Click here to watch a video interview with Kierra and Madison on the Portage College YouTube channel.