On a busy Penn State campus where students are constantly moving from one activity to another, Lori Rose and Sue Jackson have created a small place where students can stop and relax for a minute.

Rose and Jackson — two local moms — have been living in Centre County for 30 years, and four of those have been spent offering advice to Penn State students.

The two routinely sit around campus with an “Ask a Mom” sign, ready to give advice or a hug to Penn State students in need.

“We’re Christian and want to love our community and our neighbors, but we’re not handing out anything. We just want to be available in case people need advice,” Jackson said.

Their secret weapon to get students to stop? Homemade baked goods and the 3-year-old pup, Daisy.

Rose knew cookies wouldn’t be enough to encourage people to stop, so the duo started with the then-9-year-old dog Ellie before bringing in Daisy to let her release her puppy energy.

Students who may not have felt comfortable approaching two strangers are much more willing to stop when a dog is waiting to be petted. Some come for the cookies, some come for Daisy, and others stay for the conversation.

The duo has been doing this long enough that students who stopped by for advice as freshmen are now seniors or have already graduated.

“We have a lot of students who are repeat visitors and will seek us out,” Rose said. “It’s so meaningful to get to see these kids graduate.”

“Ask a Mom” started at the tail end of the COVID-19 pandemic, when people were still feeling isolated and getting used to being social in person again.

“We didn’t know if anyone would even talk to us, but at that time people were relieved to be able to talk to someone face-to-face,” Rose said.

What started as a simple way to be there for students has become a place where folks can go for support through homesickness, relationships, and whatever else may be weighing on them.

Both Rose and Jackson have two young adult children, and for Rose, this was a part of what convinced her to join Jackson in the “Ask a Mom” endeavor.

“When my daughter was a student here, she had a lot of friends who didn’t have a mom or had a broken relationship with their mom, and I thought everyone needs a mother figure to talk to,” Rose said.

That idea has stuck with the two women.

They certainly aren’t trying to replace anyone’s parents, and they don’t expect every student who walks by to sit down and tell them their life story. In fact, they intentionally set up a place so students can easily take another path if they don’t want to stop.

But for the students who do, Rose and Jackson are there.

Students have come back to tell them that the advice they gave helped them through a difficult situation at school or in a relationship. They’ve had students who were once nervous to approach them become regular visitors.

For Rose and Jackson, those relationships are what make the time they spend on campus worthwhile. When asked what piece of advice they would give every Penn State student, Jackson pointed to something much more personal.

Her faith became an important part of her life after college, even though she was an atheist as a student.

Her story reminds us that college students don’t need to have everything figured out. Sometimes, the person sitting across from you may have already gone through the uncertainty, mistakes, and growing pains you’re experiencing.

Sometimes, all you need is someone willing to listen. That’s what “Ask a Mom” is all about.

And if students happen to get a cookie or banana bread, some time with Daisy, and advice, that’s an added bonus.

Four years in, the two moms have no plans to stop showing up.

As long as Penn State students keep walking by, stopping for a cookie, playing with Daisy, or sitting down for a conversation, Rose and Jackson will be there.