By Charlene Winters
Although BYU alumni Diana Peterson of Salt Lake City received her degree from the university, several of her children attend or have attended Stanford University in California.
And because her veins run Cougar blue, the former president of the BYU Alumni Association, last year found herself wishing BYU had a parents' program after she attended such a program at Stanford.
'I had a wonderful experience there and became inspired and determined to help BYU launch a program that would involve parents in another way while their students attended the university,' she said. 'I knew there were hurdles - sheer numbers for one thing and a lack of budget to get anything new going - but I also realized there could be great benefits if such a plan were possible.'
While it did not seem fortunate at the time, the plane from which she was scheduled to fly home was canceled, so Peterson stayed another day and attended a regional LDS conference.
While there, Peterson ran into an old friend who had been successful in the dot.com industry. She was so excited about her experience that she gushed about the possibilities of having a parents' club at BYU.
Peterson's friend said he had been looking for a way to make a difference in the church, and when Peterson said she hoped she could somehow help bring a parents' program to BYU, he was interested.
'I was just thrilled and surprised at his interest, especially in the funding of it,' she said. 'Now we have an anonymous donor who has given the program $15,000 a year for the next three years. I'm so glad my flight was canceled. I believe I was guided to run into these people who wanted to find a place to give.'
BYU's first Parent's Weekend begins Fri., Sept. 22, and concludes on Sun., Sept. 24.
'We're starting small, with a three-day weekend this month,' said Peterson, 'But we all know we are just getting our toes in the water.'
Peterson is not the only person who thought a parents' organization was an idea whose time had come, according to Michael Busenbark, executive director of the Alumni Association.
'We presented the idea to the alumni board as a project and they were excited about it - some of them were very excited. It seemed like the ideal project for the alumni leaders to offer to BYU,' Busenbark said.
'At Stanford, the alumni association provides funds to students for extracurricular events - such as uniforms - that are paid by the parents and the alumni association. These students commit and fulfill a certain number of hours of work to pay back or earn that money, and they write letters to the people who help them. I can see the day coming when we can offer many more things to students and parents through the new BYU Parents' Program,' Peterson said.
Peterson encourages people with ideas to help develop the program contact the Parents' Program administrator, Nancy Carson, at 801-378-6748.