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| Students use variety of methods to keep in contact with their moms, families |
by Ami Heyborne
HEY01001@BYUI.EDU
Scroll Staff |
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Being from anywhere other than the state of Idaho makes it more difficult for BYU-Idaho students to see or talk to their mothers as much as they would like to, Nadine Barnes, a sophomore from St. Andrew, Jamaica, said.
Technology has helped like Barnes find more ways to stay in touch with loved ones. For those who have families in the United States it is easier and faster to reach their mothers.
“When I was a freshman I used to e-mail my mother every day. Now that I am a senior, I prefer to call her once a week using a pre-paid phone card because it is the cheapest way to call her,” Allison Lybbert, a senior from Portland, Ore., said.
However, for many students it is a easier for them to use a cell phone to keep in touch with their mothers.
“I bought my cell phone to call home because I only pay a monthly payment of $30 which includes unlimited night and weekend minutes. Since I have a pretty big family and I usually spend a lot of time talking, it is more convenient for me to have a cell phone,” Brianna Bodine, a freshman from Yuma, Ariz., said.
Some students use a family share plan on their cell phone.
“I have a family share plan on my cell phone to ease the monthly bill,” Nicole Cerluccio, a sophomore from Warren, Mich., said.
Many international students would rather make the sacrifice to buy a pre-paid phone card.
For instance, Daniella Steward, a sophomore from Arima, Trinidad, said that she chooses to call instead of mailing her mother because she likes to receive feedback from her instantaneously. This is why she buys Sam’s Club pre-paid phone cards because she has forty minutes per week at a cost of $20.
Approximately a hundred students come to the office on a daily basis to either send little packages home or to purchase stamps, Funy Miller, a part time worker at the Rexburg Post Office, said.
Many students choose to use the Internet on campus to e-mail their families. There are various locations such as the Hyrum Manwaring Student Center, the David O. McKay Library or the Joseph Fielding Smith Building where students can e-mail their families because it is the cheapest and fastest way to reach their mothers, Faustina Redford, a freshman from Eugene, Ore., said.
For local students it is as simple as a quick phone call to let mom know what is happening.
“I usually call my mother on the telephone because it’s a local call. Also, it’s an actual conversation and I can receive an immediate answer to my questions,” Jennifer Johns, a sophomore from Montpelier, Idaho, said.
After all, it depends on a student’s personal budget to determine which medium of communication students would use to keep in touch with their mother.
Either way, options to communicate are broad and range from calling with a pre-paid phone card or a cell phone to mailing or sending e-mail.
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