Boyertown, PA is a relatively small, rural town about a half an hour from Reading. With a pretty big school district and limited places to hang out, everyone knows each other, and the pride is usually amped up. It's always weird to leave town and have people NOT know where Boyertown is. Everyone in the surrounding area knows exactly what Boyertown is, but as I go to college an hour and 15 minutes away, barely anyone knows where it is.

Anyway, here's some facts about living in Boyertown that will make my fellow Boyertownians laugh and reminisce.

1. Bears, Bears, Everywhere.

Taking the name directly from my Class of 2015 yearbook, it couldn't be further from the truth. There's literally bears everywhere. With over 40 fiberglass bear sculptures spread across the community, you never know when new ones are showing up, or ones you've never personally seen before.

2. "Oh, I heard you guys actually drive tractors to school?"

Sigh. One of my favorite questions from an outside school. NO. Okay, sure, on occasion you'll see a tractor drive down Philadelphia Avenue or parked in the school parking lot as a joke from one of the rural students. Yes, our school and town is known to thrive on country music and farming, but there's plenty of us on the polar opposite side of that spectrum as well.

3. Football games

Boyertown's football team doesn't have the best reputation, but we do have pretty good spirit, and an incredible marching band. The student section always has someone leading in "rollercoasters" and the stands are always a nice turnout. The football games are the ideal place for the middle schoolers to hang out, and the ideal place for the high schoolers to make fun of the middle schoolers or enjoy some cheese fries or fried Oreos.

4. "Aren't there KKK rallies there?"

ANOTHER popular question among outside schools, and a horrible one at that. During the Civil Rights era, hate groups happened to be popular in Boyertown. Though it's always made fun of that Boyertown is a crappy town, we stand up for ourselves when that particular moment of history is mentioned. It's over and done with.

5. Colebrookdale Railroad

Something brand new! The Colebrookdale Railroad runs right through the heart of the town and has not been running for God knows how long. However, recently, trains have been put onto the track for short rides, mainly for children to enjoy. It's an awesome new thing for our town!

6. YMCA

We learned how to swim there. Our parents exercised there. We went to day care there. The place to have your birthday party when you were in elementary school was at the Boyertown Y. There was a huge room for the party itself right across from the giant pool where the swim teams practiced and have their meets.

The Y was also the place to be on a Friday night if you were a fifth or sixth grader because the fifth- and sixth-grade dances were held in the gymnasium area. Oh, the awkward photos I have from those dances. Yikes.

7. State Theatre

Our pride and joy. Over 100 years old, the State Theater was an awesome place. When movies were just about to leave the big cinemas, State Theater would grab the reels and show them for cheap. Our Battle of the Bands was held there, among other concerts. Unfortunately, it was shut down last year, but still holds a place and a historical memory in all of our hearts.

8. Zern's

You either loved it or you hated it, but Zern's Farmers Market is always being talked about. Interesting, big, and a little messy, Zern's is full of countless shops and food stands, but also full of well...interesting people.

9. Fun Days

Only the best days of the year! That is if you're in middle school. Even when you're older, though, Fun Days was pretty cool. It's a rather small event but raved about throughout town. Located in Boyertown Community Park, tons of carnival games, carnival rides and food stands are put up for a period of a weekend. Don't forget the pig races! Children, adults, and teenagers alike enjoy the fun, the drama and the tiredness of the summer at Fun Days.

Boyertown is a great town. Though the inhabitants usually talk about how much they hate it, it's always going to be a part of us as we grow older. We're always going to look back on the fond memories we got to share in "Bear"Town.