Students invite siblings to experience college life, fun

Student Development scheduled a variety of activities to show the siblings of residents the positive side of college life. However, many of the teenaged siblings invited to the weekend felt that there was not enough planned for them

by Anne C. Miller assistant managing editor

Tiny bodies were sighted bobbing around campus and dwarflike voices and laughter were heard echoing through the hallways as students introduced their siblings to Cabrini College.

However, in the distant background, a group of adolescent siblings found entertainment in unusual places.

A majority of the siblings that stayed at Cabrini for the weekend were between the ages of 12 and 16.

For these students, the weekend did not include many of the scheduled activities, but rather, consisted of hanging around with their older brothers or sisters and their friends.

Student Jackie Battista and brother, Bill, agreed that the weekend would have been more successful if Student Development had more activities for a varied age range, rather than focusing on elementary school-aged participants.

Student Development and Cabrini College hosted the annual siblings weekend Feb. 19 to 21.

All students were invited to welcome their siblings to Cabrini for a weekend of fun-filled activities and bonding.

However, such activities turned out to be a bust for the adolescent visitors.

The activities began with dinner in Founder's Hall dining hall on Friday, Feb. 19.

Siblings were welcomed to attend the evening's meal with the rest of Cabrini's residents.

Following dinner at 7 p.m., the movie "Antz" was shown in the Widener Center lecture hall. Admission to the movie was free and attracted a younger crowd, who bought bubbles of laughter to the usually silent room.

Produced by Dreamworks Distribution, "Antz" allowed the audience to "see the world from a whole new perspective," that of the ant.

But where were those siblings who found "Antz" just about as much fun as an ant farm?

These students were busy discovering the true meaning of "college life" with their siblings.

Saturday, Feb. 20 bought a flurry of activity and entertainment, beginning with brunch.

Carnival activities were presented in the Founder's Hall gymnasium from to 1 to 4 p.m. and included games, prizes and the popular "moonwalk," or inflated jumping cushion.

"My four-year-old cousin loved the carnival," said Beth McArdle, a sophomore resident.

Meanwhile, several adolescents were found taking the moonwalk to extremes.

The day did not end with the carnival, but was followed by a magician in the Grace Hall Atrium at 7 p.m. and an ice cream party in the Grace Hall Board Room at 8 p.m.

After Saturday's flow of activity, Sunday was scheduled to be relaxing and bring closure to the three-day frenzy of events.

Persona Cards could be pro- duced by students and siblings outside of the cafeteria during and following brunch on Sunday, Feb. 21.

Siblings were then encouraged to utilize the pool in the Dixon Center to top off the weekend.

"It's interesting to see my brother's reaction after experiencing life away from home," said sophomore Meghan Dougherty. Dougherty's younger brother, Jimmy, said, "I was intrigued by the college and impressed by the freedom that comes with the college lifestyle, but disappointed that more activities were not aimed at an older crowd."