Fathers of Saint Mary's women are descending upon campus today, ready to begin the annual Senior Dads' Weekend.
"I think it's important because it is a time that you and your dad get to spend with each other," Senior Dads' chair Meghan MacKinnon said. "He is able to see his daughter at her school. He can experience first hand the life she holds at her home away from home."
Tonight's "Casino Night" in the Student Center kicks off the weekend. Fathers and daughters will play casino games from Blackjack to Texas Hold 'Em. There will also be a live auction and Saint Mary's a cappella group Bellacapella will be performing throughout the night, MacKinnon said.
MacKinnon also said that after Friday's activities fathers and daughters will attend a tailgate for the Notre Dame-Navy Game at the College Football Hall of Fame, beginning at 11:30 a.m. Saturday and lasting until after the game. There will also be a Chinese auction during the tailgate, MacKinnon said.
The weekend concludes with an 11:15 a.m. Mass at the Church of Loretto on Sunday, MacKinnon said.
After the Mass, Saint Mary's students and their fathers are free to do whatever they want.
"We will also have alternative events that include golfing specials at Blackthorn Golf Club and discounts at Chippewa Bowl," MacKinnon said.
MacKinnon and her committee of Sophia Nechvatal, Kathryn Nussbaum, Helen Casey and Nicole Leach began planning Senior Dads' Weekend last year. In April of 2006 they reserved locations and dates, and they honed in on details after summer break, MacKinnon said.
The event was sponsored by the Senior Board, of which MacKinnon and her committee are all members. Senior Board, however, isn't actually donating any money; funding relies entirely on the fee that the fathers pay, MacKinnon said.
MacKinnon said their main goal was to plan activities that every senior would enjoy, not just a particular group. She and her committee were still working on last-minute details Wednesday.
"I am excited for my dad to really meet my friends and to spend time with them," MacKinnon said. "I want to show him just how much this school means to me and how he, with my mom, make that all possible."
Even seniors whose fathers can't make it, like Lisa Hannewyk, are looking forward to the weekend. Hannewyk said one of her friends' fathers is going to "adopt" her for the weekend.
Of course, seniors whose fathers are coming are excited as well.
"[My dad] had a lot of fun when he came with my sister four years ago so I'm looking to kind of show her up," senior Britni McElligott said.
