NEW VINEYARD — It was Valentine’s Day and it was also their 23rd birthday.

Twin brothers, Jared and Greg Merrill of New Vineyard, each stationed in Iraq, hadn’t seen each other for months until Jared made a surprise visit to Balad Airbase where Staff Sgt. Greg has been since December on his first tour of Iraq.

Senior Airman Jared, who has been stationed at Camp Arifjan since September of 2009, made frequent convoy trips to Balad until his brother arrived there. Then his convoys went in the opposite direction, said their mother Doreen Merrill of New Vineyard.

The 2005 Mt. Blue High School graduates enrolled in the Air Force after graduation but about a week apart. They were separated for basic training and future assignments. Jared is now based out of North Dakota and Greg out of Italy, she said.

With an expected completion of his second tour in Iraq in March, Jared had let his family know he was going on a mission that weekend, his last mission in Iraq, and wouldn’t be able to see his brother before coming home.

That was only the start of his surprise.

Greg who works nights in the mechanical division was asleep when his brother came into his quarters and woke him up. Trained to be ready for anything, Greg came up out of the bed ready to fight … but it quickly turned into a huge hug for the twin brother he had not seen for over two years, she said.

The surprise then extended to parents, Roger and Doreen Merrill, when Greg called and asked Doreen  when she had last talked to Jared on the phone. When she replied it had been Thanksgiving, she was quickly informed that it hadn’t been that long. When she disagreed, she was again corrected. That’s when she realized she was talking to Jared. He had made it to Balad on his last mission, she said.

For a mother who enjoys surprises, her sons haven’t disappointed her. Last summer her oldest son, Bruce, invited his parents out for a meal. At the restaurant, someone surprised her by putting their hand on her shoulder.It was Jared. Bruce had picked him up at the airport and played along with his surprise, she said.

The sons last came home together in 2007 when Bruce was involved in a four-wheeler accident, she said.

They both played football and wrestled at Mt. Blue High School and did everything together. Now they both say they will make a career out of the Air Force.

“They just enjoy it and are getting to see the world,” she said. They also appreciate the people they serve along with in Iraq.

“Everyone is nice but even if it’s someone they don’t like or doesn’t like them, (in the service) that person has our back, don’t worry,” they’ve told their mother.

The young men have also fallen for best friends from Jay, she said. Jared’s girlfriend, Rebecca Gallant, followed him out to North Dakota and went to school there. She’s now waiting for his return while Greg’s wife, Nicole Davis Merrill, stays with the Merrills in New Vineyard.

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