Why I can’t wait to get back to my hometown of Summit, NJ

Throughout high school, I spent every day waiting to go to college. I couldn’t wait to “get out,” to leave Summit, the small town where everyone knew everything about everything and everyone, and make my way to the fresh and new city of Ann Arbor I would soon call home.

Maybe I was just being naïve, a stupid teenager who didn’t realize just how special and amazing my enigmatic hometown really is. But now, as I prepare to return home in three short weeks as I finish up my freshman year at Michigan, I realize how excited I am to go back to Summit, NJ. Being a Summit Hilltopper has many meanings, but when I sit down to think about Summit and the reasons why I feel as eager to go back as I once was to leave, there are a few things that stand out.

We have an absurd amount of school spirit

Whether it’s a basketball game in the crowded, sweaty high school gym, or the highly anticipated winter musical put on in the newly renovated auditorium, Summit citizens roll deep to any and all town and school sponsored events. Students are even known to make Facebook groups to hype up events and inevitably talk trash to that one sneaky opponent who somehow gains access to the group — but you know what? It works.

We come up with clever t-shirt captions

Aside from their top-ranked academics, Summit schools are known for their unbelievable athletics and drama departments, with teams that go on to win national titles, and students that go on to perform all around the country. But arguably the best part of these teams and ensembles is the t-shirts they make and sell at the beginning of each season to pump students up. Most memorable? The lacrosse team’s “Summit IS Lacrosse,” and the golf team’s retort “Summit IS Golf.” Actually, scratch that, it was definitely the track team’s “Tripping on Lactic Acid.”

We are devoted to Magic Fountain

Magic Fountain is the ice cream capital of the world (or it should be). Offering classic soft serve and hard ice cream with any topping imaginable, but best known for the “magic blend” — a tall cup of soft serve with toppings mixed in — the drive-in station is truly ~magical~. “MF runs” are a staple for any Summit native, and we feel protective over the shop  when residents of neighboring towns invade the street-crowding lines. Welcome to OUR house.

We take advantage of the proximity to other towns

Perhaps one of the most underrated aspects of Summit is the general proximity to the towns neighboring it, and the endless opportunities this affords. On any given Saturday, my friends and I could be found essentially town-hopping. From the big movie theater in Mountainside, to Party City in Westfield (to get party decorations of course…I mean, it’s Saturday) and finally to Millburn Deli for a Gossip Girl or a Godfather sandwich. These easy excursions eliminated some of the small-town feel that staying inside the realm of Summit may have fostered. But we always found our way back home (except that one time we got lost on Route-22).

We basically live at the Summit train station

Similar to the perk of proximity to other towns is the fact that Summit has its own train station. Looking back on my high school experience, I was so lucky to have had the capability to go into the city anytime I wanted. Not only did this enhance my knowledge of New York, the city I hope to work in someday, it made me an avid Knicks fan, and gave me a reason to make fun of my dad when he missed the Summit train stop on his way home from work — every other day.

We love the endless restaurant options (the ones other than MF)

The restaurants in Summit are top notch. Some of my favorites (and the ones I make sure to hit on school breaks) are Pizza Vita (two pizza Tuesdays!), Taka Sushi, Tito’s Burritos, and Summit Bagel.

So, to all of my fellow Class of 2015 Summit grads and more: we may now be Wolverines, Eagles, Trojans, Gators, and others — but we will always be Hilltoppers at heart.