Marching toward her opening set, junior Hala Barodi looks around the field to find her sister. Once she spots Heather, who is a freshman, she gives her an encouraging smile and gets in drill. After waiting for the drum majors to start, Hala places her fingers on the clarinet and begins the show.

“We argue 24/7 and anybody who knows us, knows that,” Barodi said. “She’s a pain in my butt, but I love her to death.”

There are currently a total of six sets of band siblings.

“Some days we get along, some days we don’t,” freshman Heather Barodi said. “It all depends.”

Senior Farah Abubaker said having a sibling in band creates a different environment.

“I love having my sister in band because it is an experience worth having,” she said.

Hala said spending so many hours with her sibling has improved their relationship.

“Being in band with Heather has absolutely created a stronger bond because I’m with her way more, and we’re doing a lot of things together,” she said.

To avoid a fight with a sibling “you simply walk away from them,” freshman Zein Abubaker said.

“We usually just ignore each other and handle the argument at home,” she said.

Getting names mixed up is a constant problem, Hala said.

“More people call me Heather than they do Hala,” she said. “It used to be so frustrating because we do not look or act alike at all, but now I’m just used to it. Even my mom gets our names mixed up.”

Director Paul Heuer said he has called siblings the wrong names before.

“Sometimes we will accidently call the student that has been here longer the new student’s name,” he said.

Farah said when she gets the chance to march next to her sister, she likes to have as much fun as possible.

“I love marching next to her just so I can mess her up or make her laugh,” she said. “She’ll get frustrated with me, but most of the time she’ll laugh it off.”

People usually find similarities and differences between the siblings.

“I get compared to Farah all the time because people expect this (or that) out of me,” Zein said.

Farah said that having a younger sister in the program gives her inspiration.

“Zein has a strong passion for band, and the passion she has is something we can all learn from,” Farah said. “Her love for band is too real, and she taught me how to love my activities.”

Hala said no matter how annoying a sibling might be they are still family.

She said, “Having my little sister in band is a pain in my neck, but I’m glad she’s there with me.”