Dear Bridgeport,

I feel as if I’m leaving you much too soon. Eighteen years seems as though it should feel like forever, but I sometimes have a hard time believing it hasn’t all just been a week. I know most 18-year-olds can’t wait to leave their hometowns and count down the days until they are out on their own to explore the world. But while I hope to get the chance to travel the world also, I know I will always take a piece of you with me, because I’m not—nor will I ever be—ready to let you go.

While out on a walk a few nights ago, I came to the top of a hill overlooking Main Street. The sun was setting, turning the sky into a perfect watercolor of gold, purple, pink, and blue. As I paused to take everything in, my heart hurt. Although eager for a new journey, I wasn’t ready to depart from the only place I’ve ever called home. I could never properly describe what my life here has meant to me, but I will try and let you know what a gift you have been.

Thank you for giving me the most amazing childhood. Thank you for summer nights chasing lightning bugs in the yard, days spent in the sun at the Bridgeport Pool, Youth Soccer games (which for me was really a chance to show off my cartwheel skills on the sidelines), preschool at Bridgeport United Methodist Church, afternoons running around the neighborhood with friends, walks around the city park, sled riding down the hills at Compton Park, and taking turns on the tire swing with my sister.

Thank you for Johnson Elementary, where I began my education at the age of five, wearing my plaid sundress and carrying a Monsters Inc. backpack. Thank you for Tea at the White House and Tour the USA projects in third grade, a chance to find my passion for violin in fourth grade, birthday lunches, talent shows, music class productions, costume parades around the track before Halloween parties, Jump Rope for Heart programs in gym class, and a Hawaiian-themed fifth grade graduation.

Thank you for Bridgeport Middle School where I became a runner thanks to Coach Merinar and the cross country team, performances of High School Musical, Jr. and Annie where I discovered my love of theatre, Tomahawk reward parties, and annual school-wide trips to Kennywood Park.

Thank you for Bridgeport High School, where Mom’s job as an English teacher led her to this beautiful city. Thank you for the opportunity to first visit Mom’s classes at just 14 days old and then continue to grow up in that building. Thank you for four all-school plays, a senior play, four seasons of cross country, homecoming week, prom, Student Council, football and basketball game themes. Thank you for classes that challenged me and teachers that gave up time and sleep to ensure I had the knowledge to succeed.

Thank you for displaying the importance of love and charity. Thank you for the outpouring of love that surrounded Jack Rollins and his family during his battle with neuroblastoma, for volunteer organizations that do everything from serving at the Mission, and for a chance for me to be a Buddy to children with disabilities through the Bridgeport Challenger Baseball League.

I thank you for showcasing your magic to me through the sound of the choirs singing in Bridgeport United Methodist Church, snow falling onto Main Street during Light Up Night as the tree was lit, the laughter of my cross country teammates during Friday night spaghetti dinners, the silence before the lights came up on stage on opening night, and the cheers of the student section at the first football game of the season.

I will forever cherish how you shaped Maggie Lohmann into her own person. Thank you for providing opportunities that stretched and frustrated me as well as those that delighted me. Thank you for the tears—happy and sad—but most of all for the many more smiles you made possible.

As excited as I am for college, I am still in shock that my years of being a full-time Bridgeport resident have come to a close. However, as Beatrix Potter once said, “We cannot stay home all our lives, we must present ourselves to the world and we must look upon it as an adventure.” I know that this is true, so although I must leave you Bridgeport, thank you for giving me people and experiences that have prepared me for anything that comes my way. I am forever thankful to have the privilege of calling you my home.

Love,

Your Grateful Resident