dbachman@observer-reporter.com
CANONSBURG - June 2 was a special day for Ruth E. Osborne's family.
That's the day she was born 90 years ago.
But little did she know the significance that date would always hold for her family.
On that very date 39 years later, she gave birth to her youngest child, a daughter, Kathryn.
And following in her mother's footsteps, Dr. Kathryn Weldy gave birth to her oldest child, a daughter, Teah, on that same date in 1983.
"I sure started something, didn't I?" Osborne chuckled as she sat in the waiting room of the podiatry practice in Canonsburg that her daughter operates with her husband, Dr. Charles Weldy.
None of it was planned. In fact, Teah was born three weeks' late.
"They told me they'd have to induce," Weldy said. "I never thought she'd be born on my birthday."
Then she quickly added, "It's not a nice place to be on your birthday."
The three Gemini share some common interests, but their personalities are all quite different.
"We don't know which twin we are," Weldy quipped.
Osborne was a nurse before she started her family, and Weldy is a doctor. Teah, however, graduated last year from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a master's degree in criminology.
Nevertheless, the three have strong ties to Canonsburg General Hospital. Weldy has been on staff for nearly 26 years, Teah worked in medical records and Osborne has volunteered at the information desk since she moved here from her home in East Liverpool, Ohio, three years ago.
All three are musically inclined as well. Weldy plays the flute and is very involved with the band boosters at Canon-McMillan High School. Teah and her grandmother play the clarinet.
Despite three big reasons to celebrate on June 2, the family never does anything lavish. They didn't even try to pull off any surprises for Osborne's 90th birthday this year, preferring, like always, just to celebrate the day quietly with family.
"Mom does not like pomp, fanfare and circumstance," Weldy said. "We were brought up that family was a priority. We spent birthdays and holidays together. We traveled across the country together. Family comes first."
Ironically, the three women aren't the only ones who share birthdays in the family.
Osborne gave birth to a stillborn son on July 20, and Weldy once again followed suit years later when she gave birth to her daughter, Alena.
Weldy's daughter, Nikaylin, also shares an April birthday with her uncle, Tim Osborne.
"Of our six kids," Weldy said, "three were born on the same day as my mom had children. Teah had to mess it all up."
Teah and her husband, Douglas E. Travers Jr., are expecting their first child, a son, in August.
"There's never a dull moment," Teah said.