Energy will be on the rise this weekend as family members from across the country venture to campus for Lil' Sibs Weekend to get a taste of college life.

"Younger kids have an energy all their own that I feel will bring a completely different atmosphere to Marquette this weekend," said Kathleen Blaney, a freshman in the College of Arts & Sciences and a co-chair for the event.

However, it is not only 'little' siblings who have come to the event in the past — participants have ranged from 3 to 18 years old.

"Because the whole weekend is tailored to all ages," she said, the siblings that are coming "will not find themselves bored in any way."

There will be an "added air of excitement" when the siblings and family members arrive on Friday, she said.

Lil' Sibs Weekend, which has a jungle theme this year, is packed with more than 15 events on and off campus, according to Event Chair Brittany Davis, a sophomore in the College of Communication.

The goal of the weekend to show siblings everyday campus life and to experience Marquette, said Davis, who is also vice president of the Residence Hall Association.

Any current Marquette student's family member who is 18 years old or younger can participate. The student, however, must be a resident of a Marquette residence hall or university-owned apartment, she said.

The event — sponsored by RHA, residence halls' and university-owned apartment's councils and the Office of Residence Life — has been successful in the past, Davis said.

"I think they all have a really good time," Davis said of the 300 to 400 siblings who come to campus. "They keep coming back."

Davis' 16-year-old brother is one of them.

"He enjoyed Capture the Flag and root beer floats," she said. "He had a really good time and wanted to come back again."

Her brother will be back for the event and they will go to a Brewer's baseball game on Saturday, she said.

Laura Vietmeyer, a sophomore in the College of Communication and a co-chair for the event, said her cousins are coming up to visit her this weekend.

Vietmeyer said she plans to go to some of the events with her cousins and will participate in Hunger Clean-Up.

Vietmeyer also agreed with Blaney and said the siblings will "shake up campus."

"It will be refreshing to have younger kids here," she said. "It's nice to bring in some new life (to campus)."

A team of 12 students and two hall directors has been working on the event since December, Blaney said.

"It's a much larger event than I had anticipated," said Blaney, who is the oldest in her family and has not attended an event like Lil' Sibs Weekend.

"It's really been fascinating to see it all come together," she said.

Siblings coming to campus can still register on Friday, Davis said.