Saint Mary's annual Junior Mom's weekend attracted 540 moms, aunts and sisters this year, according to junior class president Maggie Carswell.
Carswell said this weekend attracted the most for any parent weekend at the College including First-year Parent's Weekend, Sophomore Parent's Weekend and Senior Dad's Weekend.
The weekend kicked off on Friday with a wine and cheese reception. The board also invited vendors including Adesign & Sons, Inspire Me! and Saint Margaret's House to sell items like jewelry and scarves.
Saturday began with yoga in the morning followed by yogurt and granola bars. Saturday afternoon events included cupcake decorating, Mass at the Church of Our Lady of Loretto and culminated with dinner at the Hilton Garden Inn with President Carol Ann Mooney.
"I’m excited for the dinner with President Mooney," Carswell said. "It will be really nice for everyone to spend time with her [since] a lot of the moms are alumnae."
Junior class vice president Aly Parrett said the weekend provides Saint Mary's women an opportunity to bond with their moms and friends.
"I hope they get to cherish these moments," Parrett said. "When you’re in college you don’t get to spend a lot of time with family. I hope [the juniors] are able to spend time and make memories."
Junior Johna Mitchem said she thought the weekend was well planned.
"I loved having all the mom’s around," Mitchem said. "I thought I was a nice balance of doing things and having time with our moms on our own."
Mitchem said the dinner at the Hilton Garden Inn was her favorite part of the weekend.
"Just being able to hang out with my friends and my friends' moms meant so much to me to have my mom here this weekend," she said.
Mitchem said it was nice to share her weekend activities with her mom.
"I really enjoyed showing my mom my favorite parts of Saint Mary’s and Notre Dame."
Carswell said planning the weekend was a difficult, but rewarding experience. She and Parrett credited the other class boards for helping to make the weekend run smoothly by serving as volunteers.
"It’s not easy planning this, it's hard," she said. "We try to make a weekend that everyone will enjoy. It's not easy, but it’s worth it."
News Writer Stephanie Snyder contributed to this report.
