Raising the Bat Light Over the Summit

They asked and he came.

When Clarks Summit's very own Batman saw the Bat Signal rise up above State Street a few weeks ago, he was intrigued.

"Apparently there will be a siren going off as the Joker beheads one of the ice sculptures during the Clarks Summit Festival of Ice," he said. "I was told that I need to capture the villain and take him to the police station before he wrecks the rest of the ice sculptures and ruins the festival. I was hired to do that. They put the bat signal up in the air a few weeks ago and I knew I needed to come home."

While refusing to divulge his true identity in order to protect his work, the Clarks Summit Batman said that he was born and raised in the borough and graduated from Abington Heights High School. Because the theme for this year's Clarks Summit Festival of Ice is "Sub Zero Superheroes," he said he was looking forward to seeing himself immortalized as an ice sculpture in his hometown.

Catching the Joker before he wreaks havoc on the festival is tame compared to some of his other experiences but, Batman admits, he is looking forward to the weekend.

"This is a very low-key thing compared to some of the other things I've done," he said. "There have been a lot of crazy people that I've had to chase around."

Batman also explained that there will be a convocation of superheroes descending upon Clarks Summit this weekend to participate in both the Heroes and Subs Table Decorating Competition and Luncheon at the Ramada Inn on Northern Blvd., on Saturday, Feb. 16, from 1-3 p.m. and at the Comic Con at the Clarks Summit Elementary School, 401 W. Grove Street on Saturday, Feb. 17, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Contrary to what one might think, he doesn't know some of his fellow superheroes personally.

"Superman, for example, is part of the Justice League, which I am a part of but I haven't personally met him yet," he said. "There is a big meeting coming up during the Comic Con with some of the other superheroes and we are all going to discuss how to help save more people."

He is also looking forward to meeting the illustrator who brought his story to life, Neal Adams, who will appear at the Comic Con.

"I heard they got one of the original illustrators for the comic series, Neal Adams, to come," he said. "I am going to hang out with him a little bit and see what he thinks of me as Batman, since he originally thought I was fiction. It should be a fun time. I am looking forward to taking pictures with kids and even adults who are my fans."

He would also like people to know that the Batmobile will be seen riding around Clarks Summit throughout the weekend and the Bat Signal will be on the front of the Clarks Summit Borough Building evenings for the duration of the festival.

Batman is offering visitors to the Clarks Summit Festival of Ice the opportunity to pose for pictures, which he will then post on Instagram at @SummitBatman. He can be reached at clarkssummitbatman@gmail.com for all sorts of jobs, including, but not limited to, saving damsels in distress, protecting the innocent and making sure any and all community events run as planned.

Sign up for Text Alerts

Sign up for e-mail newsletters