We often bemoan the reasons that people leave the area–the winters are too long, the taxes are too high, there aren’t enough jobs, etc. But, there are also reasons that people want to settle and live here.

I would put at the top of the list, the making of life-long friendships. One of my kids recently attended his 30th anniversary of graduating from high school. Those friendships from years ago are still strong, and several from his class now live around here. We live in a place that nourishes a sense of home.

Yes, you can go live in the “hot spots” of the country like New York or L.A.–but there is nothing like home.

The schools here are also good, the cost of housing is less, and you don’t have to drive in traffic for an hour to get somewhere.

We also are not a social or educational desert. We have colleges, libraries and centers for the arts, education, law, comedy and culture. Plus, we are only a little more than an hour away from Bills Stadium!

In a bit over two hours, you can be in Cleveland…in three, you can be in Toronto.

As to the job market–yes, we don’t have as many choices here. But, that is also changing as people become able to work more from home. We do have high speed cable and fiber optic lines…the internet works fine here!

There is another factor that I believe will be working in our favor as time goes on…and that is climate.

We don’t have to live inside an air-conditioned space most of the year. We can feel the cool breezes of the evening coming through our windows at night. And, despite our long winters, we have a pretty calm climate. Our lights don’t go out for weeks at a time because of hurricanes.

And, though not exactly weather-related, we live on high ground. Worried about floods? Not so much around here. Our people live from between 700 ft. above sea level along Lake Erie to over 2,000 feet on the Allegheny foothills south of Frewsburg. The water all flows downhill from here!

I see things gradually changing. Where can I go for good affordable schools? Where can I live to enjoy the out-of-doors? Where can I put down roots where the grocery store and shopping is only a short drive away? Where can I live and make life-long friends?

And, where can I live where a rising sea level is not a threat at all? Try living around here. You’ll like it!

Rolland Kidder is a Stow resident.