By Diane Gasper-O’Brien
University Relations and Marketing
Sometimes it’s a challenge for college students to get home to visit family as often as they would like. So Fort Hays State University creates opportunities to bring family members to the students.
One of those is Little Siblings Weekend, a yearly event where Residential Life invites younger siblings of students living in residential halls to visit their older brother or sister for a weekend and participate in a variety of fun activities together. Siblings 4 years and older are welcome to participate.
The 2020 event is set for April 3 to April 4. At least two younger siblings enjoyed their experiences so much last year that their parents decided to register them again this year.
Six-year-old Ryker Mooney will be back for another year to visit his older sister, Rylee, a resident of Heather Hall.
Ryker is probably too young to decide where he will attend college in 12 years. But if Rylee has anything to say about it, her brother will choose Fort Hays State University.
Then she could come visit Ryker the same way he does her these days.
Riana Mays feels the same way about her brother, 10-year-old Brennan, who dreads each time when his only sibling leaves home to return to college. Brennan comes to Hays often with his parents to visit Riana, and she said he likes being involved in Tiger events.
“He has told me already that he wants to go to college at Fort Hays State,” Riana said. “It’s a few years away, but I know he really likes it here.”
For now, younger siblings get the chance to hang out in a safe college setting with their older brothers and sisters. The siblings will be able to eat dinner together Friday evening, April 3, followed by a movie that night and a full day on Saturday before leaving campus Sunday.
A scavenger hunt, craft making, swimming and yard games are just some of the scheduled events, and the siblings are invited to select some of their own fun activities as well. FHSU students on a residential hall meal plan have guest passes that can be used for their siblings, and Residential Life provides a free meal to all participants for Saturday’s lunch.
The younger brothers and sisters sleep in the rooms with their older siblings, giving them a chance for family bonding at their siblings’ home away from home.
Rylee Mooney, a junior majoring in medical diagnostic imaging, spent her childhood in Russell before moving to McCook, Neb., when she was in a sophomore in high school. Riana Mays, a senior nursing major, also grew up in the area, about an hour away in Logan.
Neither Rylee nor Riana had older siblings to visit in college, but their familiarity with the campus was part of what drew them to Fort Hays State. Both were also impressed with the areas of study in which they planned to major. And their mothers are FHSU graduates.
Now, Rylee and Riana enjoy entertaining their younger brothers when they come to visit.
“Ryker is pretty attached to me, and it was hard for him when I went away to college,” said Rylee, who has a teenage brother, too. “So we are both really looking forward to the Little Siblings Weekend again.”
So, too, is Doris Udenze, a native of Nigeria who is working on her master’s in higher education and students affairs. One of her job responsibilities as a graduate student in Residential Life is to coordinate Little Siblings Weekend.
“This is a great way for younger siblings of our students to experience college life, to see what their older siblings go through and to have some fun,” she said. “For me, personally, it’s a good experience. I’ve never put on a program like this before, so what an opportunity.”
Registration for the weekend is open until Wednesday, April 1; however, registration deadline to purchase a T-shirt is Friday, March 13. The charge for a T-shirt is $10. Participants can register and fill out a liability waiver online at fhsu.edu/reslife, or call Residential Life at 785-628-4245 with any questions.
Cutline: Ryker Mooney, younger brother of Fort Hays State University student Rylee Mooney, shows off a mask he made during a craft session at last year’s Little Siblings Weekend.
