Elon University father Drew Bachman said he was surprised when he saw his son, first-year Chris Bachman, during Family Weekend 2014.

“My son seemed more happy to see us than ever before,” Drew Bachman said.

Family Weekend was a time for students to reunite with their families and show them their home away from home as they visited with professors, enjoyed musical performances and supported the Phoenix at the Elon vs. University of North Carolina at Charlotte football game.

For decades, the idea of Elon families reuniting with their students hasn’t changed, but the weekend and activities have evolved.

The first documented Parents’ Weekend was scheduled on a crisp fall day back in 1964.

That November day looked a lot different than present-day Family Weekend. Parents drove through the countryside to enter Elon’s humble campus for one day of activities and reunion.

Earl Danieley, Elon’s president at the time, welcomed the modest group of 300 students and parents at a convocation in Whitley Auditorium. Families then walked Under the Oaks and past West Residence Hall to enjoy a complimentary meal in McEwen Dining Hall.

Because Rhodes Stadium wasn’t built until 2000, families didn’t have the luxury of a short walk to the football stadium.

Dedicated visitors and students drove 4.5 miles to Walter Williams High School in Burlington to cheer on the team, which was then known as Elon Fighting Christians as they played Newberry College.

Elon history was made during Family Weekend 1966 when Virginia governor Mills E. Godwin, Jr. and North Carolina governor Dan Moore stood in Whitley auditorium to dedicate the opening of four new buildings: Hook, Brannock, Barney and Long.

After the dedication ceremony, families headed across the lawn to celebrate the groundbreaking of the Iris Holt McEwen building.

The library was then housed in the Iris Holt McEwen building until the bigger Carol Grotnes Belk library opened in 2000. Today, the building that broke ground during Parents Weekend in 1966 is home to McEwen School of Communications.

Grandparents welcomed

Parents’ Weekend evolved into a family weekend when Elon began to invite grandparents to campus.

Danieley was a major influence in welcoming this new crowd to Elon and said Elon began to invite grandparents after they found out that many of them were interested in seeing the campus.

“That turned out to be a very good thing,” Danieley said. “We got outstanding reactions from them.”

Former Elon parent and current Elon grandparent Carol Blake has a strong connection to Elon beyond sending her child and grandchild to the university.

In the late 1960s Robert Blake, beginning his career as an Elon English professor, purchased a house on the corner of East College Avenue and North Antioch Avenue with his wife, Carol, Today it is the home of Elon Hillel.

Carol spent a lot of her leisure time on Elon’s campus with her children, taking her young children for walks in their strollers around the campus and later enrolled them in violin lessons at Elon.

The Blake family was tied even closer to the Elon community after Carol and Robert’s son, Jonathan, enrolled at Elon in 1984.

The Blake family experienced Family Weekend over the years as they spent time at Elon with their son and now with their granddaughter, Sabrina Thornton, who is a sophomore at Elon.

“I was more involved as a [Elon] parent, but as a grandparent I’m just enjoying the progress,” Carol said. “Everything’s changing, but I’m enjoying seeing everything change in a positive way.”

As for her granddaughter, Carol said she couldn’t be more proud of the aspiring physical therapist and loves that she chose Elon as the place to spend her college years.

Family weekend today

Many first year students used Family Weekend 2014 to spend quality time with their families after being apart for a month.

“We saw my son Thursday night. He’s the first child [to go away to school],” said Elon mom Jodi Eisen. “It was a very emotional moment for me.”

Students’ younger siblings got to know campus by taking campus tours. Averi Eisen, a younger sister of first year Elliot Eisen, said she took a tour of campus Friday morning to start off her college search.

“I hadn’t been here before,” Averi Eisen said. “I liked the tour. It’s a really nice school.”

Many students showed their families around campus and introduced them to new professors and friends.

Saturday morning, parents wandered the halls of McEwen, Alamance and other academic buildings to meet their students’ professors.

“I really enjoyed meeting my daughter’s professors last year and am looking forward to meeting them again this year,” said Elon mom JoAnne Lawton. “It’s a great way to put a face to the name.”

It was also common for students to opt out of Elon family weekend activities and instead venture beyond Elon to Greensboro, Raleigh or Chapel Hill.

“We spent a little bit of time on campus but there were things we wanted to do and see outside of Elon in Greensboro,” said junior Maggie Miller. “Campus is always crowded so we decided to leave it to the freshmen whose parents hadn’t seen the campus yet.”

Just like Family Weekends in the past, the weekend gave parents a chance to connect with their students and the university.