Why living in the tiny town of Mt. Penn, PA is actually pretty great

Ever wondered what it’s like to grow up in a tiny suburb right next to the poorest city in the U.S.? My hometown of Mt. Penn, PA is located right next to the city of Reading, which was named America’s most impoverished city in 2011, according to the New York Times. While Reading has unfortunately been in poor condition throughout my entire life, Mt. Penn is actually a nice, tight-knit community that has proven to be a great place to grow up.

Living in a small community gave me, and many others, the ability to stand out in a crowd and make an impact on the community as a whole, something that isn’t quite as easy when you’re among 300 other students also vying to stand out.

Here are a few of the reasons I’ll remember my small, sleepy suburb so superbly.

Small school, big bonds

The town’s most unique aspect is probably its small size. I graduated in a class of 64 people, which consistently shocks every person I tell. However, it’s actually a great way to form bonds with so many people you’d see so often due to our small classes.

Don’t like somebody and want to avoid them? Okay, that’s a bit harder, but at least you’re almost always around your friends, right? Would I have been third in my class if I went to a larger school? Probably not, and if that were the case, I wouldn’t have been able to rap my way through a graduation speech. And a graduation ceremony without rapping is a tragedy.

Want to go somewhere? No problem

A great benefit of the town’s small size is how relatively close together everything is. We’re always within walking distance from the lake, pool, rec center and local restaurants, which is a convenient way for us to meet up and hang out.

Our long-standing rivalry with Exeter

We’ve had a bit of a strenuous relationship with our next-door neighbors, the substantially larger Exeter Township, as recently as two years ago, when a deal to merge our two districts fell through. Today, however? This rivalry is more of an inside joke between friends who couldn’t care less what school we go to. We collaborate with a few of our clubs, a lot of Antietam students play sports at Exeter, and in general, we hang out with people who go there quite often.

Any bad blood parents and district officials may have had is treated as an exaggerated joke among the students, and being able to say potentially rude things in an obviously joking manner is a surprisingly good method of bonding.

Our swimming pool is actually pretty great

Compared to every other swimming pool in the 20-mile radius, the size of Mt. Penn’s pool is pretty substantial. Even people from larger suburbs come to our pool instead of theirs (Sup, Exeter?). Come to chill with friends or practice your strokes during the day, and don’t forget about the always-popular moonlight swim.

Tons of active community events

Our community keeps the activities coming, from an annual block party and activity fair to a Christmas tree-lighting ceremony to just about any fundraiser you can think of. All those, coupled with our super-active music department holding a lot of concerts throughout the year, mean that there’s a lot to look forward to.

The infamous Student Council Chocolate Sales 

Everyone loves chocolate, right? That’s a universally known, scientifically proven law of nature. (Don’t fact check that.) So when Student Council has its biannual Gertrude Hawk Chocolate Sales, the school goes nuts. I surprisingly have a good time going door-to-door and selling chocolate bars in pursuit of fancy living. However, the best part for most people is the under-the-table candy bar black market. We’re not allowed to sell candy bars during the school day, but since that rule doesn’t quench the demand of the people, who are we to deny them their sweets?

The best part of the sales is finding the elusive, heavenly White Chocolate Truffle bar. There’s only one in every pack of 52 bars, and it warrants its legendary status by being an unmatched, magnificent sensation of the taste buds.

Long bikes rides along the lake

It’s a simple, small lake with a slightly-battered path enveloping it, but if you don’t get nostalgic simply by riding around in circles and taking in the sounds and sights of nature, then you’re definitely doing something wrong. Simply standing and watching a row of ducks (and a couple swans) slowly swimming towards you is both majestic and a little terrifying. It makes me feel like I came to the wrong neighborhood.

Local restaurants are easy to find 

Have some lunch at Pennside or Jake’s Sandwich Shop, head to the Mt. Penn diner or Anthony’s Trattoria for a fancier meal, or have a late-night McDonald’s party whenever you want. I can’t count how many of those I’ve been to more than once.

Chilling at the A-Field

One of the most popular places to hang out is our hybrid baseball/soccer field, the A-Field. Whether you’re into sports or you just want to relax, head here with some friends and take it all in.

Head on up the hill to Stokesay Castle and the Leiderkranz 

Our little town has two great places (conveniently right next to each other) for German cuisine. In the fall, everyone (and I mean everyone) looks forward to Oktoberfest, riding up the hill in a school bus-turned-shuttle because of the total lack of parking. Would you believe that USA Today ranked it as the #1 greatest Oktoberfest in the nation? ‘Cause that really happened.

There’s an infinite list of places to get pizza 

From popular chain restaurants to locally-owned businesses, this small suburb has quite the wide array of options for pizza lovers. You haven’t lived until you’ve had Esposito’s. It’s, like, the third or fourth best pizza I’ve ever eaten.

Back when Pokemon Go was still relevant, this place was thriving

I’ve been to a lot of suburbs that have been entirely barren of Pokestops or gyms, but Mt. Penn is surprisingly covered in quite a few of them. Going out in giant packs of friends and taking down gyms was a highlight of this past summer, and if Niantic ever decides to add Gen 2 Pokemon and make us actually touch the game for the first time in forever, I’m looking forward to getting my squad together and asserting the dominance of Team Valor.

It’s a great place for theatre lovers

For our small size, our school and community theatre scenes are thriving. We’ve put on productions that have wowed audiences and won us a few competitive awards, which is remarkable given our small pool of talent. They’re also just so much fun to perform (Maybe I’m a little biased? Eh, whatever.)

I can’t deny how much I enjoyed living in Mt. Penn and being a part of such a united community. I’m looking forward to coming home now and again, eating schnitzel at Oktoberfest, seeing our theatrical productions, and above all, hanging out with my lifelong friends (But the schnitzel is a super-close second.)