Last week, family members of Andover students flocked to campus to visit their students in Andover’s annual Family Weekend. Family members had the opportunity to visit their student’s classes and various on-campus events such as Grasshopper, Andover’s student talent show. Visitors shared their reactions on visiting campus and participating in scheduled events.
Meghan MacKinnon P’24, ’27
“Coming in for family weekend this year is really special for us since it is our oldest daughter Molly [MacKinnon ’24]’s Senior Year and it is our middle daughter Kelley [MacKinnon ’27]’s freshman year. So to have all five of us together for this time is wonderful. When you see your boarder child for the first time after a month or two, it is always incredible to see how much they have grown, in all aspects. Physically as well as in their confidence and maturity.”
Yi Shen P’26
“I think because my student is returning, this Family Weekend felt a lot busier than last year. All of the students seem to know exactly what they’re doing and do everything with a sense of purpose. It’s almost as if they always have something to do, and I could tell the upperclassmen seemed a little tired… The red carpet for Grasshopper was very cool, and all of the performers were amazing. The show was incredibly well put together and I loved seeing my student perform in it.”
Faye Xu P’25
“I feel it was a little bit more organized [than previous years]. A couple of examples [are] the way to get tickets for Grasshopper, it was a lot more clear. I really like the classes I went to this year, I really like the teachers that my kid had. It was nice of the teachers to talk with us, especially after the classes, they reassured us and that was really good… Grasshopper was really good, it was all really successful and I really liked the performances, all the kids are really talented and the Academy awards theme was really fun, especially with the emcees.”
Wendy Dill P’27
“My favorite thing is going to be the chorus concert tonight… Music is so enjoyable. Actually, my favorite thing about Family Weekend is meeting all the other students with my daughter and all of her friends… One of my favorite things about being a mom at Andover is giving substitute mom hugs for people whose moms aren’t here.”
Virginia Zhuwao P’27
“I just wish that there were more of this kind of event [Family Weekend]… This was just the best. I really loved it. I loved to see the parents here, I loved to go to different places. It was truly a wonderful experience. I’m just hoping we can have another time like this to come and visit and just have this kind of experience. It’s really amazing, very unique.”
Michael Zhuwao, P’27
“[We were looking forward to] seeing [our daughter], and hanging out with her, and just bringing a piece of home, like when you’re together with your family again. We’ve always been together. [Our daughter] is the first one to be out of [the home] going to boarding school, so without her, it just feels different. So, we were looking forward to just being family again all in the same place. There’s a difference in when you talk to someone on the phone or even in a video call than when you’re together.”
