HANNAH MILLS

Growing up in Holly Springs since I was four years old, I have had the privilege of watching the Triangle become what it is today. What started as a quiet suburb has turned into one of the most welcoming and exciting regions in the country, and I feel lucky that I got to grow up alongside it. This fall I will be starting my senior year at NC State University, just a short drive from the neighborhood in Holly Springs I have called home my whole life, and I still find myself discovering new things to love about this area all the time. Southern Wake County has a way of doing that to people. If I could sit down with a family debating on moving to Wake County, these are the first three things I would tell them about.

The first is the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences in downtown Raleigh. Most people know it exists, but far fewer realize how extraordinary it actually is. This museum is not just a rainy day backup plan. It is a living, rotating experience that gives you a genuine reason to return every few months. One of my earliest and favorite memories is going to the butterfly garden there as a little kid with my parents and grandparents, standing completely still while butterflies landed on my shoulders and arms. I remember thinking it was the most magical thing I had ever seen. Every summer that exhibit comes back, and even now as a college student I am already planning to go again this summer because some things just do not get old. Beyond the butterflies, the museum has something for everyone. There are towering dinosaur fossil displays that make you feel small in the best way, an insect collection that manages to be both fascinating and a little terrifying, and even a 3D theater that turns a regular afternoon into a full experience. Right now they are also hosting a sloth exhibit, which is exactly the kind of rotating special exhibit that keeps bringing people back throughout the year. Admission is free for the permanent collection, and special exhibits are priced so that a family outing does not require a second thought. For a family new to Raleigh, this is the place that quietly becomes a tradition, the spot you bring visiting family, and the trip your kids will still be talking about weeks later.

The second is Midtown Raleigh, and specifically the community that has built up around it. Newcomers often go straight to downtown, but locals know that Midtown is where there are real hidden gems. Every Thursday evening during the summer, Midtown hosts its Beach Music series, which is live music outside hosting different local bands every week. Tickets cost less than ten dollars and even come with free ticketed parking. It is the kind of event that all ages enjoy. This summer, Midtown has also added free outdoor movie nights on the first Friday of every month where you can bring a lawn chair and watch a film under the stars at no cost. These are not one time events. From Zootopia 2 to the original 1984 Ghostbusters, there are movies everyone can enjoy. There are also Wellness Wednesdays, where the park lawn fills up with people doing everything from yoga to boot camp together as a community. Saturday mornings from spring through fall, the Midtown Farmers Market takes over the commons with local vendors selling fresh produce, baked goods, and handmade goods from makers throughout the region. There are also Makers Markets and pop up events scattered throughout the year that are free to attend. Midtown is not just a place to run errands. It is genuinely the kind of place where you show up for one thing and end up staying for three hours because there is always something else pulling you in. These events are a reflection of the kind of community that Southern Wake County actually is, one that makes space for everyone and finds ways to bring people together without asking much in return.

The third is Dorothea Dix Park, and it is one of those places that is just hard to put into words until you have actually been there. Every summer the sunflower field blooms into something that genuinely stops you in your tracks, with rows of tall yellow flowers stretching out with the Raleigh skyline sitting right behind them. It never gets old no matter how many times you have seen it. Beyond the sunflowers, there is a dog park, hammock garden, a giant grass couch that every local has taken a picture on at some point, and a brand new adventure playground that just opened last summer with a massive swing, climbing towers, and a waterfall, all completely free. My personal favorite part, though, are the giant wooden troll sculptures that have been hidden throughout the trails and wooded areas of the park since late 2025. They are made by a Danish artist named Thomas Dambo and they are genuinely unlike anything else in the city. Walking through the park trying to spot all of them feels like a little adventure, and I have watched both little kids and full grown adults react to finding one with the exact same excitement. That is kind of what Dix Park is as a whole. It is a place where everyone, regardless of age or how long they have lived here, still finds something that makes them feel like they discovered it for the first time.

The Triangle is more than a good place to live. It is a place that grows with you. I have watched it expand and change over the years while still holding onto the warmth that made my parents choose Holly Springs all those years ago. It has great schools, incredible opportunities, and one of the best universities in the country right in its backyard, and I will fully admit my bias as a soon to be NC State senior when I say that. More than any of that though, it has the rare quality of feeling like a community. The kind where a family moving from across the country can stumble onto a Thursday night concert or watch their child light up at a butterfly landing on their hand and think that they made exactly the right choice. That is not a hidden gem. That is just home.