In Defense of the Auburn “Family”

[RunInRed 16,381]

A great read ...

In Defense of the Auburn “Family”

Posted on March 3, 2015 by Chadd Scott

A student in the Auburn Plainsman recently wrote that Auburn’s use of the term “Family” to describe the bond between students and alumni is nothing more than slick marketing. She finds Auburn’s attempts to connect around this notion lacking in sincerity.

Her ideas are the typical, angsty, literary spasms of a disaffected teenage writer struggling to belong and lashing out against her surroundings. To put it simply: she’s a dumb kid.

I was a dumb kid once too.

Wanting to strike out on my own and distance myself from my nuclear family in Wisconsin, I took off with my mom on a tour of college campuses as a junior in high school. I knew I liked pretty girls, college football and warm weather so we headed south. I visited Alabama (GASP!), Tennessee, Florida and Florida State.

I fell in love at Auburn, with Auburn. It was love at first sight. I’d never set foot in Lee County and inside of five minutes on campus I knew that was where I would go to school. There was no Plan B. It was the best decision I had made in my life to that point – maybe still.

I didn’t know a single person at Auburn when I arrived on campus in the fall of 1993. To this day I can remember spending my first night alone in a Harper Hall dorm room feeling like, after 18 years, I was finally home.

At Auburn I would fall in love twice. Have my heart obliterated twice. Meet my best friend. Start becoming the person I wanted to be. Experience extraordinary kindness and welcome from almost every student or professor I met. Begin to understand Auburn’s unique hold on a person. Begin to understand what the Auburn “Family” means.

To me, Auburn people are a family because we all recognize how special Auburn is, how it shaped us all and how much a part of us it is. So much of what I experienced at Auburn has determined the person I am today that to speculate on who I would be without it is foolish.

Auburn has magic and that magic is Auburn. I wish there were a more tangible way to describe it. Auburn soaks into you when you’re there. All Auburn people have Auburn inside them and that makes us a “Family.” It is not a place you leave behind even when you leave. We share a connective bond that goes beyond attending football games together or a diploma.

The Plainsman writer states, “it is impossible for Auburn University to love you. Auburn University cannot cry with you; it cannot empathize.”

I disagree.

On the rare occasions I return to Auburn, I do feel love from the place. I have felt it cry with me. When those trees came down, and went back up, that University empathized with its students and alumni.

My friends from Auburn who know me best will be surprised to read what I have written here. I don’t have an Auburn bumper sticker on my car, I’m not a donor, I don’t outwardly display my Auburn-ness. That doesn’t mean Auburn hasn’t influenced me greatly or that I don’t love it or that I don’t consider myself a member of its “Family.” Every family member exists inside the family differently.

But you have to open yourself to Auburn like you have to open yourself to any relationship in order to feel it. When the Plainsman writer can put more experiences behind her opinions, she’ll be able to see that Auburn people are, in fact, a family.

And you know what’s even better? The minute she does she’ll be welcomed into it.

READ MORE: http://www.sportsday...-auburn-family/

[meh130 1,043]

Odd I would read this today. I was in a reflective mood, thinking about my own angsty youthful years, and deeply appreciative of how the years have brought maturity and wisdom.

All I can say is this: The biggest family reunions I have ever been to were in January 10, 2011 in Glendale and November 30, 2013 in Auburn.

[GreenEyedGirl 6]

Rather, I wanted to be a part of “Auburn University.” A family can’t be bought with tuition, scholarships, good test scores or essays. Families don’t get to approve their members. The relationship of school as family was implausible to me, and that “family” as a sea of orange and blue in a football stadium even more so

Many of you may not agree with me but I feel a part of the Auburn family and I've never spent a dime on tuition at Auburn so I couldn't have "bought" the family. I've not spent as much time in Auburn as I would have liked, so I guess I'm sort of like a family member that lives far off. Personal family members are not always present at family reunions and sometimes live far off but that doesn't make them any less a family member. Oh and there's always "that one family member" maybe she's just that one? I don't know. I do know that if I can feel like a member of the family (if even an outsider and non AU student) she surely can at some point. I love all things Auburn and have as far back as I can remember.

[WarTim 3,456]

Auburn is In me. I sent both of my children to Auburn. They got their degrees and found there husbands at Auburn. No matter how far we may travel...Auburn is Home. "Come to Auburn and be Forever Changed"...

[Shift 350]

I still remember the first time I set foot on campus. I had never been there prior to that but everything seemed familiar and it felt like I had lived there my whole life.

That's when I knew that Auburn was the right place for me.

[AuburnNTexas 7,139]

I was a Navy brat my senior year my dad waas transfered from Quantico, Va. to San Diego, Ca. I went from a school on a Marine base to a surfing community in Southern Ca. Being a military brat this was just one of many moves during my early years. I had been accepted to Penn State with an NROTC scholarship and then I visited Penn State it was ok but I didn't feel like I wanted to go to school there.

I had a friend from Quantico HS who was one year older then I was his dad was a native of Alabama and John went to Auburn, Half way through my senior year at Mission Bay John sent me a letter saying I would love Auburn come on down. It is the only letter he ever sent me I still don't know why he sent it. Based on that letter I decided to go to Auburn. The first time I saw Auburn was doing orientation.

I loved Auburn from the minute I stepped on campus in 1969. It was family there is no other way to describe it. It truly was and is the Prettiest Village on the Plains.

[autigeremt 6,593]

My story into the Auburn Family started a lot like the one mentioned in the original post. I had never been to Auburn until a visit my senior year in high school....Iron Bowl weekend, 1989. I grew up thinking I was Clemson bound (having grown up less than 15 miles away) but my dads situation at Eastern Airlines put a kink in those plans so I decided to visit a few schools so I'd have an idea where I would land after a 4 year stint in the Army. I was changed forever.

[3rdgeneration 6,469]

Just like anything, you get out of it what you put into it. If this girl doesn't buy into the family, she'll never be a part if it. I know that other people feel strongly about their universities, but Auburn is just a nice place, with generally nice people. It is welcoming and friendly. And despite recent events, you feel safe there. I consider anyone who claims Auburn as family. We may be very different, but we have the same spirit. I feel very blessed indeed.

[Tigerfinz 1,362]

Awesome!! I started my love affair with Auburn at the same time (fall 1993) and in the same way. I can't properly describe the feeling I had even in those first few minutes on campus. Sasnett Hall. Thought I was supposed to go to Bama. Scary thought I know. But that all changed in a moment. I signed up for classes the next morning and never looked back. Still the second best decision I ever made. Next to saying yes to my awesome wife when she proposed to me. Smart girl. A Bama grad who couldn't stand to live without some Auburn in her life. Auburn can and will change/ influence the lives it touches. It did mine. I miss Auburn all the time. I am so grateful I chose Auburn. It also chose me. That stays with you forever. We are family and there is a reason we have a home to visit with brothers and sisters welcoming you back with open arms. Its the Auburn family way.

[Scottie4AU 0]

I am a long time member but haven't posted in quite some time...took me several tries to recall my password. Not to sound too bammerish, but I was the TDA champ in 2006. Only played once since.

I have even posted this story...but was moved to repeat. I grew up an Alabama fan. More specifically, a Bear Bryant fan. As a sophomore, I started dating an Auburn girl (she was a senior...feel free to admire me). She was the only girl I ever dated. This August 31 will be our 30th wedding anniversary.

Now, she comes from the Websters definition of an Auburn family. They would allow this dumb bammer to go to games. In my senior year, I decided to go to Auburn, but was going to be one of THOSE guys...an Auburn student who carried his red and white shaker in his back pocket.

At the 'Bo Over the Top' game, when AU ended a nine year losing streak to the fighting Bryants, I watched from above as Auburn fans stormed the field. I looked over and noticed my best girl weeping. She had endured a lot as an Auburn fan. Some of it from me.

I thought to myself, "I have NEVER cared for something so much." It was right then and there that my colors started to change.

All due respect Plainsman writer, but there is most certainly an Auburn Family. Maybe someday you'll get it.

War Eagle!

[aucanucktiger 1,791]

Wait, what?! A college paper giving space to a runny-nosed egocentrist? Unprecedented!

[AUwent 3,747]

^Even if I (somewhat) disagree with her, how is simply offering a contrarian view being a "runny-nosed egocentrist?"

[tgr4lfe 220]

In 1981, my family moved to Russellville, AL. I was 8 yoa and knew nothing about football. My sister met and married an AU grad from church within two years of us moving to AL. After they married, their birthday present to my younger brother and I was a trip to an Auburn football game. I don't even really remember what our first game was, but we new brother in law was an absolute riot to be with so my brother and I had a blast. I do remember Jeff taking us to The Flush, driving up and down the old Wire Rd section right by campus and yelling "War Eagle" to all those tailgating. We repeated that all the way to my high school days. To say the least within a few years of going I was bound and determined to go to Auburn. I only applied at AU. AU changed my life and my faith b/c of the people I met there and at the Auburn Christian Student Center. I love Auburn, I was the Nashville Auburn Club President for two years and proudly talk about AU every chance I get!!

WAR EAGLE forever!!

[PUB78 1,357]

Grew up in Russellville too and as a Bammer fan. Good friends went to AU after HS and I would visit them while I was a student at NWASJC and liked the people, campus and atmosphere better than Bama. Changed my major and felt AU had a better field of study and decided to attend Auburn. Never have regretted it! Son graduated from AU, daughter from Troy but she is a huge Auburn fan.

[RunInRed 16,381]

I am a long time member but haven't posted in quite some time...took me several tries to recall my password. Not to sound too bammerish, but I was the TDA champ in 2006. Only played once since.

I have even posted this story...but was moved to repeat. I grew up an Alabama fan. More specifically, a Bear Bryant fan. As a sophomore, I started dating an Auburn girl (she was a senior...feel free to admire me). She was the only girl I ever dated. This August 31 will be our 30th wedding anniversary.

Now, she comes from the Websters definition of an Auburn family. They would allow this dumb bammer to go to games. In my senior year, I decided to go to Auburn, but was going to be one of THOSE guys...an Auburn student who carried his red and white shaker in his back pocket.

At the 'Bo Over the Top' game, when AU ended a nine year losing streak to the fighting Bryants, I watched from above as Auburn fans stormed the field. I looked over and noticed my best girl weeping. She had endured a lot as an Auburn fan. Some of it from me.

I thought to myself, "I have NEVER cared for something so much." It was right then and there that my colors started to change.

All due respect Plainsman writer, but there is most certainly an Auburn Family. Maybe someday you'll get it.

War Eagle!

Welcome back!

[lutzcammed 469]

When I was a student, I wouldn't have understood what Auburn family meant. Not even remotely, even though even then I loved Auburn and despised Bama. The older I get, the more I get it. In time, she will too.

[cptau 169]

The writer in the Plainsman will eventual understand. Hopefully not long after she graduates and she start longing for the college friends and good times she left behind.

[AU64 10,122]

The writer in the Plainsman will eventual understand. Hopefully not long after she graduates and she start longing for the college friends and good times she left behind.

Agree....when I arrived at API in 1959 there was not much to love...an ugly campus, Mag Hall (need I say more?), "temporary buildings" for class rooms and a school suffering from underfunding. BUT Auburn grows on most people....if perhaps not "love at first sight". And, even by the time I left AU with two degrees, I was still primarily a sports fan and not a huge fan of Auburn University.

Over the years however, I came to appreciate the impact that AU had on me, the opportunities it had provided a kid from a small town in south Alabama and even more impressed with the role of Auburn in improving the life of the state's residents. And thus, I came to share the sense of family that people talk about.

In this modern world, many young people don't grow up in a positive family relationship and reading the backgrounds of some athletes who arrive at AU, I get a fresh appreciation for the loving family I had....and also understand how AU can become the primary family for young people who do not have a stable family in their background.

So....for the young editorialist, I just say..."take advantage of the educational opportunities that AU provides, enjoy the friendships developed with others on the Plainsman staff" .... and one day...perhaps many years into the future, you will come to realize what "family" means with regard to Auburn...and will count yourself fortunate that you had a chance to attend school there and be a part of that family.

[aucanucktiger 1,791]

"Even if I (somewhat) disagree with her, how is simply offering a contrarian view being a "runny-nosed egocentrist?""

Egocentrist: (New World Dictionary, 2d College Edition): "viewing everything in relation to oneself".

Presuming to be qualified to lecture others on something subjective (the feeling of family) is the epitomy of conceit.

Runny-nosed: (The Book of Canuck): a whiney, quasi-informed 18-22 year old

[AUwent 3,747]

Egocentrist: (New World Dictionary, 2d College Edition): "viewing everything in relation to oneself".

Presuming to be qualified to lecture others on something subjective (the feeling of family) is the epitomy of conceit

I can't imagine what kind of horrible person would do that.

[augolf1716 21,102]

I am a long time member but haven't posted in quite some time...took me several tries to recall my password. Not to sound too bammerish, but I was the TDA champ in 2006. Only played once since.

I have even posted this story...but was moved to repeat. I grew up an Alabama fan. More specifically, a Bear Bryant fan. As a sophomore, I started dating an Auburn girl (she was a senior...feel free to admire me). She was the only girl I ever dated. This August 31 will be our 30th wedding anniversary.

Now, she comes from the Websters definition of an Auburn family. They would allow this dumb bammer to go to games. In my senior year, I decided to go to Auburn, but was going to be one of THOSE guys...an Auburn student who carried his red and white shaker in his back pocket.

At the 'Bo Over the Top' game, when AU ended a nine year losing streak to the fighting Bryants, I watched from above as Auburn fans stormed the field. I looked over and noticed my best girl weeping. She had endured a lot as an Auburn fan. Some of it from me.

I thought to myself, "I have NEVER cared for something so much." It was right then and there that my colors started to change.

All due respect Plainsman writer, but there is most certainly an Auburn Family. Maybe someday you'll get it.

War Eagle!

That's my line buddy

[augolf1716 21,102]

Grew up in Russellville too and as a Bammer fan. Good friends went to AU after HS and I would visit them while I was a student at NWASJC and liked the people, campus and atmosphere better than Bama. Changed my major and felt AU had a better field of study and decided to attend Auburn. Never have regretted it! Son graduated from AU, daughter from Troy but she is a huge Auburn fan.

Well I see we got some Golden Tigers in here.....I knew tgr4lfe was from R'ville but now we got PUB