ONE BIG HAPPY FAMILY
By B. Robert Zawrotny, ’04
Who would imagine 2,600 people could fit into one living room? Converting the hard court of the Marriott Center into their home turf, President and Sister Samuelson did just that and more, winning the hearts and devotion of the BYU student body at a "campus home evening activity" on Sept. 10.
Seated in a mock living room complete with couches and a giant job chart, President Cecil O. Samuelson; his wife, Sharon; and his daughter Sara used the opportunity to introduce their immediate family to their new campus clan. Like any good family home evening, the night included family business, a musical number (by the group Vocal Point), story time, a game of Operation (with members of the Pre-Med Club), a question-and-answer session, and a lesson.
Counterbalancing the formality of his inauguration ceremony, President Samuelson asked the BYU Student Service Association (BYUSA) to organize an activity that would help him get acquainted with the students on a personal level. David A. Johnson, '04, BYUSA president, explains, "We wanted this to help the students to learn about the president personally and to get to know him and also to give him the chance to counsel them spiritually."
From the start, President and Sister Samuelson kept the crowd entertained with their quick wit. Kimberly Gardner, '04, BYUSA vice president for public relations, says, "I just thought he was hilarious. And that was probably the funnest thing for all of us, to just see President Samuelson as who he is."
One such light-hearted moment came during the question-and-answer session when a student asked President Samuelson what his favorite kind of Jell-O was. "We've had 39 years of happy marriage, and I hope you understand the dynamics," he quipped. "My favorite kind of Jell-O is the kind she puts before me."
Besides keeping the students entertained during their giant flannel-board presentation of how they met and with their game of Operation, the former physician and his wife also used the opportunity to counsel those in attendance.
During the question-and-answer session, President Samuelson touched on the blessings of being at BYU: "It's been established by the Lord through the prophets of the Lord, and we ought not to take that lightly because that gives us advantages that no other place has." He also addressed the importance of attending devotionals, saying that he's realized that "in the four and a half months that we've been here on campus that one of the remarkable things about Brigham Young University is our devotionals, and we hope that you will come."
For her part, Sister Samuelson counseled the students to get involved in campus life and obey the honor code, among other things. She told students that it is up to them to make the most of their college experience. "If your time at Brigham Young University is going to be as wonderful a time as you all want it to be, for the most part it is up to you," she said.
Besides walking out the doors with rice crispy treats "made" by Sister Samuelson, those in attendance left campus home evening entertained and inspired. "I think they saw a side that we usually don't get to see in a president," says Tyson E. Taylor, '05, executive director of BYUSA campus activities. "We were also able to get a wonderful spiritual message from him about attending devotionals, purifying ourselves, and making ourselves better people—and at the same time have a little fun and come together as a campus.
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