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For Mark McKee, an assignment with Vertex introduced a place where professional opportunity and a quieter daily life could coexist.
One of the things Mark McKee noticed about Sarnia was how rarely anyone honked.
By his recollection, he had been working in the area for about two years before he first heard a driver sound their horn. Having spent time on the roads in Western Canada and the Greater Toronto Area, he found the restraint unusual. He asked someone about it, and the explanation was simple: people here tended to find it rude.
It was a small observation but it reflected something he was coming to appreciate about the place. The roads were far busier but the horns quieter. People seemed patient. And a community he had barely known existed was beginning to feel familiar.
Mark works with Vertex, whose consulting division identified Sarnia-Lambton as a place to expand its services in Ontario. The company had connections to the region and recognized opportunities to serve some of the same clients it worked with in Western Canada.
For Mark, the assignment meant getting acquainted with somewhere he knew almost nothing about.
"I don't know if I would have been able to pinpoint Sarnia on a map ten years ago," he said.
His introduction came during the pandemic, when he spent several months in a hotel before moving into a house rented by his employer. As his stays grew longer, he developed relationships through work and made friends. Eventually, he decided to buy a house of his own.
"I was pleasantly surprised by how welcoming everybody was upon the move from Saskatchewan," he said.
The surrounding farmland offered something familiar, and the professional possibilities gave him another reason to consider staying. For his particular work, Mark saw greater opportunities in Ontario than he had in Saskatchewan.
He was also struck by the range of occupations within the region and the surrounding area. In conversation, he moves easily from welders and machinists to lawyers and consultants. His point is that someone unfamiliar with Sarnia-Lambton might underestimate the work taking place here.
The region's industrial base supports an economy that extends into engineering, environmental consulting, manufacturing and skilled trades. Healthcare, education, agriculture and technology offer other professional settings. For someone assessing a move, that breadth provides several starting points for researching employers and considering how their experience might fit.
Mark encourages people to do that research. He also points to Lambton College as an option for those considering further training to prepare for work in the area.
His own experience shows how a business decision can become a personal one. Vertex came to the region to develop its services and client relationships. The assignment gave Mark time to discover what living here could look like, beyond the workday.
Much of what he enjoys is ordinary: walking through his neighbourhood, reading, cheering for his favourite sports teams and sitting around on the front porch. He notices other people on his street doing the same. He meets friends and clients for wings and various outings. Compared with Toronto, he appreciates the quieter surroundings and lighter traffic.
These details help explain his attachment to the place. A neighbourhood walk or an evening on the porch has become part of his routine. The appeal is in how comfortably those things fit into daily life.
There is more nearby when he wants it. Across Sarnia-Lambton, trails, parks, beaches and marinas provide places to walk, cycle, swim and spend time on the water. The region includes urban neighbourhoods, smaller towns and rural communities, offering different ways to live within the same area.
For Mark, the lake has opened up an interest he had not anticipated. A friend has taken him boating over the past two summers. Although he has never considered himself much of a water person, he is now thinking about buying a watercraft so he can explore more of the shoreline.
It is a modest change in plans, but a telling one. He arrived focused on the work. Now he is considering how else he might spend his time here.
Mark credits Vertex with bringing him to Sarnia-Lambton. Since arriving, he has become an informal advocate for the region, talking about it with friends back in Saskatchewan and encouraging them to take a closer look.
"How did I not hear about the place before?" he said.
For information about careers, communities, housing, and daily life in Sarnia-Lambton, visit https://livesarnialambton.ca/
