Rebekah Smith
The end of September is the time when both stress and homesickness levels run high. To benefit these overwhelmed students, Illinois Wesleyan University hosted a Family Weekend from Friday, Sept. 19 to Sunday, Sept. 21. Titans showed their families their favorite spots on campus and took some candid shots along the way.
For first-year students, being away from home makes time with parents and siblings even more special. First-year student Codie Ford said, “I didn’t realize how dorky we were when we were together until we hung out this weekend! It was a lot of fun spending time with them, and I miss them already.”
Many IWU students are from out of state, so visits from those families are rare and special.
On Friday evening, Comedian Tracey Ashley performed a hilarious show that had her audience laughing from start to finish. Tracey Ashley performs on college campuses all around the country and has become a student favorite. “Most comedians start strong and finish stronger but tend to lag in the middle. Tracey Ashley was an exception to the rule,” first-year Tyler Casebolt said. “Her show was consistently funny for students and parents alike.”
Adding to the excitement of the weekend, IWU brought in a mentalist for a mind-bending show on Saturday. Award-winning mentalist Christopher Carter kept the audience on the edge of their seats. His show brought together psychology, hypnosis and illusion.
Christopher Carter knows how to perfectly read people to create an entertaining, humorous and mind-boggling show. He read audience members’ minds and made predictions that came true. This was a great performance for both Titan students and their families. “I thought he was really spectacular,” said first-year Austin Rupert. “His use of observation was outstanding and the audience loved it.”
Tommy Titan was on campus to take pictures with families, and there were games, face painting and activities on the quad. IWU vocalist groups Touch of Class and silenceinterrupted showcased their talent with a cappella performances.
“We love performing for family weekend,” said senior silenceinterrupted member Kate Ford. “It gives us a great opportunity to show the families what kind of awesome extracurriculars their son or daughter can be involved in here at IWU.”
To celebrate the launch and updates with the Bike Share program, IWU also hosted a bike tour of Bloomington to show families places like the Constitution Trail. Fraternity and Sorority Life hosted a reception followed by house tours to welcome new members into the Greek community.
“The Greek Life reception turned out to be a great program with our highest attendance in many years,” said CPH President Lauren Ajack. “There was positive feedback from parents after the speakers from College Panhellenic Council, Interfraternity Council, an alumna, Dean Carney-Hall and Blake Bradley.”
Family Weekend is always a campus-wide favorite for students and faculty as the IWU campus is full of activities, excitement and visiting families.