UT Martin’s Family Weekend was a roaring success as families came from across Tennessee and beyond for a few days of fun and excitement.

The first major event that kicked off the weekend was the check-in at the City of Martin Public Library’s Festival Park on Friday, Sept. 26, where the families ordered food from available food trucks and played a variety of other games like cornhole and Jenga.

As the families joined in on the festivities, many of the parents shared their opinions on UT Martin, its academic programs, its atmosphere and how they feel about their children living miles away from home.

Emmery Holt, a freshman Agricultural Engineering and Animal Science major from Lawrenceburg, happily settled in with her family this family weekend. Her mother, Cissy Holt, was pleased with her experiences in the town.

“Oh, it’s beautiful. [It has] a small-town feel and they support students and so I think it’s a wonderful place to be,” Holt said.

Tabitha Crowley, the mother of freshman Wildlife Science major Savannah Crowley, shared similar thoughts about the town as she traveled in from Clarksville.

“The community seems really nice around here. So, it’s great knowing she’s somewhere safe,” Crowley said.

Many families traveled from across the country to visit their loved ones who were attending UT Martin.

Tim Leadley, father of sophomore Accounting and Finance major Colleen Leadley, came all the way from San Antonio, Texas, to spend time with his daughter this family weekend.

Despite the long distance, Leadley can keep in contact with his young daughter, even though it requires “text messaging, FaceTime…emails and phone calls, and air miles and road miles, too,” as he said.

The Leadleys weren’t the only family traveling from out of state. Olivia Clary, a junior Criminal Justice major from Stafford, Virginia, was accompanied by her uncle, Christopher Clary, from Davenport, Florida.

“I’m driving [14 hours up] from Central Florida, [and] absolutely love it. We’ve done it three years in a row, we plan on doing it one more and just have a good old time with it,” Christopher Clary said.

Throughout the weekend, a variety of events took place, not limited to the Martin Farmer’s Market, “Donuts with the Deans”, the tailgate party and the annual visit by master comedic hypnotist Dale K. Families were overjoyed with everything they had to experience.

Tammy Crane, mother of freshman Sports Management major Reese Serbin of Mount Juliet, got a chance to visit her daughter’s Chi Omega sorority chapter as part of Family Weekend.

“I think it’s wonderful. I love seeing the smile on [Reese’s] face,” Crane said.

Joshua Cooper, father of freshman Nursing major Caroline Cooper, drove in from the White House to spend some time with his daughter to make up for all the time they spent away from each other. Since he was an alum who graduated with an Education degree in spring 2003, Cooper partook in many Family Weekend events, including undergoing a comedic hypnosis by Dale K, where he was put in countless humiliating experiences.

The college means a lot to the two, since it was the campus where Joshua met his wife and Caroline’s mother. After the long day, Cooper just wanted to “go to the game, have fun, watch the fireworks and enjoy some time together.”

The weekend ended with a victorious win for the Skyhawks against the Southeast Missouri State Redhawks, a satisfying end to a memorable occasion.