{"id":155457,"date":"2026-09-23T11:10:18","date_gmt":"2026-09-23T15:10:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/?p=155457"},"modified":"2026-09-23T11:10:18","modified_gmt":"2026-09-23T15:10:18","slug":"the-heartfelt-story-behind-ucf-alums-annual-mom-hugs-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ucf.edu\/news\/the-heartfelt-story-behind-ucf-alums-annual-mom-hugs-day\/","title":{"rendered":"The Heartfelt Story Behind UCF Alum\u2019s Annual Mom Hugs Day"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Every time a UCF student accepts a hug from Kelly Haskins \u201991<\/strong>, the radio-TV grad<\/a> pulls them in and asks the same question:<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen was the last time you saw your mom?\u201d<\/p>\n

When she first started Mom Hugs Day in 2022 as a tribute to her late son\/former UCF student, Hunter, she was stunned by some of the answers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere were a few international kids who had not seen their moms in two years,\u201d she recalls. \u201cThose hugs meant a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n

Four years in, the fifth annual Mom Hugs Day \u2014 which will be held Thursday, Sept. 24, from noon until 2 p.m. at Ferrell Commons \u2014 has grown from two moms to 50. Some bring pre-packaged snacks and water to hand out. Some sense a student is really<\/em> struggling and personally connect them to Counseling and Psychological Services<\/a> (CAPS) or Student Health Services<\/a> to get the support they need. Chipper, the UCF Police Department<\/a> therapy dog, makes appearances.<\/p>\n

Haskins looks forward to organizing the event every year on behalf of her nonprofit organization, Do It for Hunter, in partnership with UCF Wellness and Health Promotions Services (WHPS)<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe get more out of it than we give. We walk away just filled with love, and we all say, we wish we could do this every day,\u201d Haskins says. \u201cWe just want to do a little something to try to help especially some of the young people in our area because after losing Hunter, we didn\u2019t want this to happen to another family.\u201d<\/p>\n

Remembering Hunter<\/h2>\n

Haskins, who has called Merritt Island, Florida, home since she moved from Michigan in the ninth grade, is from a family of Knights. Her husband, Andrew Haskins<\/strong> \u201997<\/strong>, graduated with an electrical engineering<\/a> degree. They sent their daughters Haley \u201916<\/strong> (psychology<\/a>) and Hannah \u201918<\/strong> (nursing<\/a>) here.<\/p>\n

By the time her son Hunter enrolled in 2021, she was practiced at the college kid send-off.<\/p>\n