Of the 460 seniors graduating this May, some will never be back to their old childhood homes in Lake Zurich.

While most seniors will come back to LZ during college breaks and holidays, some 2017 graduates are saying goodbye to their childhood homes forever. These three students are uprooting their lives and moving to different states after graduation.

Sarah Blase, senior, loves the overall school spirit and community feel of Lake Zurich. In her time as a student leader and athlete she will always be grateful for her teachers, coaches, and friends, she said. As much as she loves the town, however, Blase will move after graduation.

“A year ago, [my dad] got a new job in Charlotte [North Carolina] and he’s been commuting so I could finish high school here,” Blase said. “There’s no reason for us to stay here anymore. It’s more convenient and less excruciating on my dad. And my parents have always wanted to retire in North Carolina.”

Blase is not the only one moving due to a parent’s job transfer. Vada Murray, senior, will be moving into a new house in Holland, Michigan.

“[We] wanted a change since I’m the last kid to go off to college,” Murray said.

While a change of environment might be good for Murray and others, there are a lot of things about Lake Zurich that she will miss.

“I’m just [going to] miss the people, the community, the home town feeling. Just everything I’ve done here from Alpine Fest to My Flavorite Place,” Murray said. “I love Flavorite. We have a theater, a mall, bowling, and we’re close to a big city. I never have to travel far for something.”

Brianna Reitsch, senior, will be moving to Phoenix, Arizona later this summer. While the warmer weather will be something to look forward to in the upcoming year, there were some crazy memories made in the unpredictable Midwestern weather that she will miss, according to Reitsch.

All three seniors are sad to be leaving behind their childhood homes and friends for the upcoming school year.

“With our high school, we have a lot of school spirit and take a lot of pride in what [we] do and what [we] put out there. I’m really proud I go to Lake Zurich High School and the fact there are a lot of people like that and think so highly of it,” Blase said. The people that live here want the best for you, and people take that for granted and do not realize how lucky they are.”