Paxton's Pacey kids graduating four at a time

PAXTON – Twenty-two years ago this week, the last of the Pacey quadruplets came home from the hospital.

It was a sweet Mother's Day for their parents, Brenda Pacey, a librarian, and her husband, Paxton attorney Steve Pacey, who had waited anxiously while their children's tiny lungs grew strong enough to let them breathe on their own.

Born March 19, 1986, the babies were 9 weeks premature, weighing in at under 4 pounds each. The oldest and youngest, Rachel and Edward, came home first, followed in early May by Rob and John.

Those early months were a blur of breathing monitors, constant feedings, diaper changes and sleepless nights. Not to mention lots of attention for the first quadruplets born in Champaign-Urbana. But over the years the Pacey babies grew and grew and had remarkably normal lives.

This Mother's Day weekend, Brenda and Steve will watch as the four children march up to a podium and receive their University of Illinois diplomas. They are the first quadruplets to graduate together from the UI, at least as far as anyone can remember.

What does all this mean to them? The same as any other graduate, pretty much. Growing up as a four-part package was just "normal," says John.

"It's just our life," says Ed.

A lively one, to be sure. The four like to finish each other's sentences, interrupt frequently and give different accounts of various childhood escapades – like the time Rob (the quietest) broke his leg jumping down a staircase. Depending on whom you believe, Rob was either chasing Rachel (her version) or she was chasing him (everyone else's). He did a running long jump down a) four steps b) eight steps c) the whole staircase, and caught his leg on the last step, putting him in a cast for eight weeks (or maybe longer).

(For the record, he was not as accident-prone as older sister Sarah, who seemed to break an arm or a leg every summer – once as she rounded a corner and ran into Rob. "Bad angles," says John. "Freak accidents.")

The Paceys are smart, witty and competitive, to say the least. They take any opportunity to argue a point: who has the best math GPA, who was the fastest in high school, etc. The competition started early. Rachel was born first, but Rob and John came out in a dead heat as doctors scrambled to help them. The boys "claim the same minute," Brenda Pacey says. Ed came along a minute later.

As the eldest, Rachel has been organizing the boys ever since. Friends often remark that they feel sorry for Rachel as the only girl of the four.

"I say, 'You obviously haven't met her,'" John says.

Rachel says the boys exaggerate: "I on occasion kind of order them around a little bit. It's in their best interests."

Their early years brought lots of publicity, from a press conference in their Carle Foundation Hospital room to updates on the Pacey quads as toddlers. Things settled down after that, other than occasional articles about their running prowess: All four ran track and cross-country in high school. They also played basketball, performed in the band together and graduated in the top fifth of their class. But they maintained separate friends and interests, too.

"From the very beginning we tried to downplay this," says their father, now chief justice in Ford County. "It was 15 minutes of fame, and after that it was a lot of hard work."

Their parents were always a solid team, the kids say, playing no favorites. And there was no identity-switching growing up. Though they looked a lot more alike as kids, they're fraternal, not identical, so they couldn't really fool anyone.

The quads say they look more like their other siblings than each other. Rachel and Sarah could pass for one another when they were young, and Ed is a ringer for Tom, 16. (Yes, the Paceys had another child after the quads; Brenda Pacey calls it "a little medical miracle surprise.")

How did they all wind up at the UI? It could have been the Illini shirts that family friends bought them as toddlers. Or the time they got to shoot baskets during halftime of an Illini game in sixth grade.

There was some family history. Steve and Brenda met at the UI, but all agree they exerted no pressure. In fact, they practically begged the kids to consider other schools.

The quads say they never really planned to go to college together, but they all liked the UI for different reasons.

Rachel wanted a career in special education, Ed started out as an engineer and John was interested in math and computer science – all top UI programs. Rob was initially interested in political science and law school "somewhere close," and won early admission to the UI.

Besides, it was definitely cheaper than going out-of-state or to a private school – something their parents appreciate. The days of buying 10 boxes of diapers at a time are gone, but paying four bills for tuition, housing and books is no picnic (There are no discounts for quads).

The kids keep in close touch on campus. Rob and John roomed together for four years at Snyder Hall. Rachel lived there for two years and worked there for another, joining her brothers for meals.

Ed was the rebel, choosing to live closer to engineering classes at Illinois Street Residence Halls and then moving into his own apartment. But it's just a block from Rachel's, and Rob or John crash there "when they want to get away."

They never made a big deal about their status as quadruplets, though friends eventually learned the whole story. Most thought it was cool. Some didn't believe it.

"More than one time I've pulled out the student staff directory and showed them the list of Paceys," Ed says.

They sometimes had classes together, including one physiology course taken by Rachel and Ed. He dropped it, but the professor kept giving him credit for Rachel's grades.

"It took me eight weeks to convince them we are actually separate people," she says.

Far from feeling unusual, they think it's strange when they meet an only child – "no one to play with or beat up," John says. Four is better, in their eyes. You might hold a grudge against one brother or sister, but it's hard to do that against three. Plus, there's always someone to mediate.

"Do we all agree on everything all the time? No. We don't always want to be around each other," Rachel adds.

Their parents always tried to treat them as individuals, and so did everybody else in Paxton, Brenda Pacey says.

"We didn't use the word 'quadruplets' very often," she says, preferring "kids."

This weekend, the family will race back and forth to five or six different graduation ceremonies. Miraculously, none of them conflicted with each other, though Rob had to miss his Phi Beta Kappa induction because he was officiating a track meet. ("My mother was not happy at all.") John planned to go on his behalf.

Then three of the four (with any luck) will head off to teaching jobs somewhere, while Ed stays here for grad school.

Twenty years ago Brenda Pacey wondered if her toddlers would stay close as they grew up or "scatter to the winds." Now that the day has come, the quads aren't too worried. The UI has been a good transition, Ed says. And there's always cell phones and e-mail.

Their parents are still adjusting. The house got a lot quieter when they left for college, but the UI was only 25 miles away.

When Brenda Pacey thinks back on those crazy early days, she realizes how much they all went through. It makes her even more proud of the "good solid kids" they've become.

"We were really blessed. And they do generally like each other, even though they tease and harass. That's all you can ask of siblings."

AP Video

Also on this date

• 'They're out of sight, out of mind'
• Local breeder's herd of hedgehogs is in high demand
• Half brother unaware inmate was mentally ill
• Champaign County Nursing Home at Medicaid's mercy
• Urbana increasing social services budget; Champaign reducing
• Lifelong learners finish another odyssey
• It's your business: Shop for babies, moms-to-be opens soon
• Obituaries