This weekend, committees all throughout campus will be giving University students the chance to bond with their siblings, sponsoring several events around campus for the seventh annual Sibs N Kids weekend.
Events that participants can get involved in include UAO and Union sponsored movies, including “SpongeBob SquarePants” and “Finding Neverland,” karaoke in the Union, several sporting events, planetarium shows, free skating, wall climbing, a recital at Bryant Recital Hall and one of the big events, the Sibs N Kids Carnival, which will take place Saturday in the Union Ballroom between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
In addition, the Recreational Center will give free admission to all siblings and children who are accompanied by a student or guardian between 6 a.m. and 11 p.m.
This is the seventh annual Sibs N Kids weekend, and other universities have participated with a weekend of their own dedicated to bonding with their students. Here, it started in 1999 with the original name “Spring Swing.” It took place on a Friday and Saturday with several events, and the big event was the carnival. Now, each day is packed full of events lasting from Friday until Sunday.
Heather Bishara, program coordinator for the Office of Campus Events, said the weekend is a time for family and friends to come back to the campus. Every year the University has had the family oriented weekend, it has been very successful and this year should be no different, Bishara said.
They expect 400 to 600 participants for the weekend festivities. People always come back to campus for the weekend, it is always a family and friend oriented place and with many campus organizations involved this year, we expect the same results, Bishara said.
The best part about the weekend is that friends and family can reunite, and University programs offer several family types of events form the family type of atmosphere.
“I like seeing kids on campus,” Bishara said, “they’re so excited and love spending time with their siblings and friends.” Bishara’s favorite part is seeing kids animated about seeing Freddie and Frieda Falcon at the events.
This year, the biggest event is the Jason Mraz concert to take place on Saturday. According to Bishara the fact that the event coincided with Sibs N Kids is simply a matter of convenience. This gives people the chance to see their first big concert Bishara said.
Tickets are still available for the concert, and the ticket sales are one of the highest UAO has seen in the past five years, and the biggest since the Ludacris concert in 2002.
There have been 2,981 tickets sold so far, and the selling-out point is 3,800. Tickets for the concert are still on sale Friday at the Union information desk, and will be available at Anderson Arena the day of the show.
Opening acts for the concert are Kyle Riabko, who has opened up for Ryan Cabrara and The Wallflowers in the past, and Steve Raszka, who caught the eye of mtvU and will be filmed for a music video at the show, said Brittany Barhite, the president of UAO.
