Although it’s a tradition for many father figures to visit their kids during Dads Weekend, not every student has that opportunity.

Delvan Willis, senior in LAS, has been helping his fraternity, Pi Lambda Phi, plan its Dads Weekend activities. But he’s never actually had his father come visit him on campus before — they had never met.

“I’ve been a part of this fraternity since I was a freshman, and Dads Weekend was just like, ‘eh,’ any
other weekend, honestly,” Willis said. “I would just spend time with other
people’s families making them feel welcomed. Some of the guys, I’ve been so
close to them for these past four years that some of their parents are like my
parents, so I guess in a way I’ve had surrogate moms and dads whenever mine
couldn’t come.”

But this year, Dads Weekend won’t be just like
any other weekend for Willis. After his sister decided to search for their father’s
name on Facebook, they successfully found him and contacted him. Last year, Willis had the opportunity to meet his father for the first time.

He and his father have
since seen each other several times, but it’s still not as much time as Willis would have liked. His father lives all the way in Tennessee, making frequent travel difficult.

And that’s why he’s eagerly anticipating Dads Weekend.

“We’re going to basically
have an entire day to talk, get to know each other, interact with each other, and I’m really excited about that because there are so many questions that I
have,” Willis said. “So many things that I want to know about him, and I’m
pretty sure he feels the same way about myself. Doing that over the phone in a
way is nice, but when you do it in person, that’s how you really foster and
build a relationship.”

Darius Powell, senior in ACES and Pi Lambda Phi fraternity member, had his father visit campus during Dads Weekend last year. Powell said throughout his freshman and
sophomore years, he and his father did not communicate very much. But during his junior year, he wanted to change that.

“I kind of want to change the
relationship I have with my dad,” Powell said. “I think the best way to do that
is just kind of sit and really talk. Not like father-to-son as much, but kind
of more like a friend to a friend.”

Powell said their first Dads Weekend together gave him and his father the opportunity to make their relationship
stronger.

“It has gotten easier to
speak to my dad, and I think a lot of that started with Dads Weekend,” Powell
said. “I think Dads Weekend gives us a chance to interact in a way we wouldn’t
normally.”

Pi Lambda Phi fraternity will
be hosting an all-day event on Saturday with activities for visiting
dads. There will be a potluck, barbecue, sports and a
pool table. Willis and Powell said they both look forward to spending quality
time with their dads during the special occasion. 

gebregi2@dailyillini.com