In southern Wake County, there is a charming community connected by a post office, a few stores, three schools, places of worship, and most significantly -- great families who care for themselves, each other, their schools, and their community.

On an early survey map of Wake County, there is a mark identifying Willer Spring Church.  Family farms surround this area with names identifying familiar roads today: Rowland, Banks, Adams, Temple, Partin, Holland, Alford, Smith, Utley, and others.  South of Middle Creek, Black Creek runs through the community before it empties into the Neuse River. Ponds, lakes, and lush green fields run throughout.  William Powell, in the North Carolina Gazatteer, lists the community as one that settled about 1800 and speculates that it was named for weeping willows in the vicinity.

There is some healthy debate about whether “Spring” is plural or singular.  The neighbors living here for more than a century identify their home as Willow Springs while the younger neighbors often use the singular.  When the town of Fuquay incorporated the area within its limits, it named the area Willow Spring, and the WCPSS board of education subsequently named the new high school Willow Spring High.  Some guess that the community needed a name different from the Springs of Fuquay while others guess that it should not have the same name as the nearby Willow Springs community in Johnston County.

Its character is rich.  For generations of strong families, they knew and cared for each other. Along with faith-based places of worship, Willow Springs Elementary has been a unifying source of pride for everyone.  Folks recall grandparents and great grandparents attending the school, moving on to graduate from what is now Fuquay-Varina High School.  One legendary Willow Springs neighbor, having descended from generations in the community, captured the community’s will and spirit: “We all have known each other forever and have taken care of each other.”

In 2020, South Lakes Elementary opened to accommodate the ever growing population. In 2019, Willow Spring High School opened as a temporary home  to care for Fuquay-Varina High School while its old school is being rebuilt.  True to its community, the Willow Spring High School starts as a place to care for others.  In 2021, the school will open as its intended purpose to care for 900 freshmen and sophomores under the chosen name of Willow Spring High School. 

In December of 2020, the WCPSS administration announced the Storm as the mascot of the high school after surveying the community about the suggestions, choosing navy blue, sky blue, and yellow as the colors.

A mighty strong Storm is forming, and it is one that embodies the spirit and culture of care, long embraced by its community.

At this new high school, we will care for ourselves, care for each other, care for our school, and care for our community.