About Us

What is the best way to sum up the Hugh M. Cummings Class of 1985? 

Brilliant? Athletic? Unified? 

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You would not be wrong. We are all those things and so much more. But it is not our brilliance, athleticism, or unity that makes us stand out among the rest. It is the fact we came, we saw, & we conquered as they say. And conquered we did. We are the 1st 4 year Cavaliers of Cummings High School. 

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Long before we became the 1st 4 year Cavaliers to grace the iconic halls of Cummings High School, for years prior, the 9th grade classes of Cummings and Williams Senior High Schools attended Jordan B. Sellars School for the 1 year and then started at Cummings or Williams in the 10th grade. In the early 1980s talks began at the Burlington City Schools (as it was known at the time) to move the 9th grades into Cummings and Williams High respectively. Near the end of 1981, it was announced that rising Freshmen at both schools would begin attending Cummings or Williams at the start of the 1981-1982 academic year. 

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What an exciting time to be alive and be a rising Freshman. Our class was excited, nervous, and eager to officially become high schoolers without the experience of attending Sellars Gunn for one year. We quickly realized as a class that we were and would always be known as the 1st 4 year Cavaliers. That alone created a spark within us that didn't just motivate us to be the best but to live it out every single day of our 4 years. We became an example how a class could and should be for those before and after us. We knew by this alone we were special, but our class has always had something no others have. We have had firsts that no other class can claim by virtue of being the 1st 4 Year Cavaliers. 

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To this day, our class remains close knit. We are the only class in the history of Cummings High School to hold reunions every 5 years post graduation until the Covid pandemic abruptly broke that streak. We have given to worthy causes and helped our fellow classmates during hard times and in times of mourning. We genuinely care because we know no other way. Our experience invokes nostalgia of the 80s and a time when life was simpler and a longing for life as we knew it. And boy, did we have it good!

 

We have bore each loss among us. Since 1990 we have lost 14 classmates, our beloved Principal J. A. Freeman, and 4 teachers. Time is a thief and waits for no one. It's hard to believe they are gone. With each loss a part of us dies too. With each passing we grow a little closer and hold onto each other a little tighter. We know that no one is promised tomorrow and yet, are grateful for the opportunity of having shared a portion of our lives with those who've gone before us.

 

Can you imagine how many times Mr. Freeman has called Ant Neal "Sonny Boy" since he arrived in glory? 

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It is not lost on any of us what our contributions to Cummings High School mean. We acknowledge that in every way. We continue to stand proud in knowing our alma mater was not just another high school but truly a shining example of the motto, NULLI SECUNDUS, poignantly spoken by the late, great J.A. Freeman. 

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We are SECOND TO NONE! We are the Class of 1985!