For the first time in years, Grandparents & Special Friends Day took place last week, to the delight of  teachers, students, and, of course, their grandparents.

On April 22, grandparents have the opportunity to experience the daily life of Williston students by attending classes and afternoon programs.

Lily Kane, a junior from Southampton, Mass., looks forwards to Grandparents’ Day ever year.

“My grandma went to Williston and is who makes it possible for me to go here so it is exciting for her to see the differences and similarities in our experiences,” Lily said.  “They get to see a new perspective on who we spend our time and the type of learning style we are growing up with compared to theirs.”

For lots of International Students, like Coraly Siegel, from German, their grandparents are not able to come the states for such a small amount of time. “I wish they could.”  Considering the distance, many grandparents of International Students may never get to see campus besides photos.

Some domestic or local students, for a multitude of reasons, just aren’t close enough with their grandparents to invite them. The Willistonian spoke to one student who wishes to stay anonymous, who described their grandparent as “a menace to society.”

Seren Derin, a Williston grandmother, attended the event in 2018 and 2019. Because she is paralyzed and in a wheelchair, she wasn’t able to visit rooms which were not handicapped accessible. This year she faced a similar problem, but remained resilient in celebrating her granddaughter’s accomplishments. [Editor’s Note: Derin is the author’s grandmother.]

“I only have one granddaughter,” Derin said, “I am disappointed that I can’t join all her classes because of my mobility impairment, but I’ll participate as much as I can and get a grasp of the campus [where] she spends all of her school year.”