6 Homeless Sisters Are All Becoming Nurses Together: 'It’s Our Bond That Kept Us Going' (Exclusive)

Six sisters — who have spent the past ten years homeless — have refused to let their ordeal stop them from pursuing their dream of becoming nurses.

The nightmare that upended the childhoods of the Lawrence sisters began in 2013 when their parents — David and Yonette — lost their home in the New York City borough of Queens, and the brood began hopping from the home of one family member and friend to the next.

“It was challenging,” Lauren, now 24, tells PEOPLE in this week's issue. “There were a lot of very bumpy, depressing times.”

Two years into the family’s ordeal that began in 2013, David told his daughters — who had been struggling to attend school while moving every few months — that he didn’t their situation to keep them from getting an education.

Before long, the six oldest Lawrence sisters — who were then in their late elementary and middle-school years — were enrolled in a homeschool program with dreams of one day earning their GED. “He didn’t want what we were going through,” says Dominique, 25, “to hold us back.”

Nothing, it seems, could hold the tight-knit clan back. Not only did the six oldest Lawrence sisters all earn their GEDs in 2019, they also attended Nassau Community College on Long Island. After graduating two years later, they went on to enroll in SUNY Old Westbury, where they earned their bachelor’s degrees in public health in May.

“It’s been quite an adventure,” says Danielle, 22, of their rocky start. “But what really pulled us through is our faith in God and in each other.”

For more on the Lawrence sisters, pick up the latest issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday, or subscribe here.

The siblings — now 19 to 25 years old — admit that they are just getting started. This past August they began a master’s program in public health at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University and will head to nursing school after that.

It’s a dream come true for this group of young women whose childhoods were filled with so much tumult and uncertainty.

“I’m so happy they they’ve done this together,” says proud dad, David. “I always tell them, ‘Life’s not fair. And when it throws you a curveball, you gotta adjust to it and keep going.’”