FACES OF WHISTLER: Moving to the Mountains

FACES OF WHISTLER

MOVING TO THE MOUNTAINS

FAMILIES WHO FINALLY DECIDED TO CALL WHISTLER HOME

STORY BY BRADEN DUPUIS PHOTOS BY DAVID BUZZARD

Prior to meeting her husband jeremy, Jen Black had one major deal breaker in mind for potential romances—he had to be a skier.

“So I think our first ski date was a tenuous one,” Black says. “We knew we liked each other, but oh my god—if he’s a bad skier, and I like him, how is this going to play out?”

Luckily for Jen, Jeremy could hold his own on the slopes, and before long the pair’s love for the sport—and for Whistler—helped cement their budding romance.

“We were total weekend warriors. We were in our early 30s, and living our best lives when we met each other,” she says.

“And for sure, the fact that we were both good skiers helped—the romance went quickly because we both loved Whistler so much.”

While Jen and Jeremy met in Whistler in 2001, they wouldn’t make the transition to living here full time until 2013, along with their two boys.

“We did that little thing that I’ve heard people since do, and it makes me laugh so hard, but (they wonder), ‘are there neighbourhoods in Whistler?’” she says.>>

JEREMY AND JEN BLACK

JUSTIN SMITH

“I was really shocked to see how many people really lived here and were making a run at raising their kids here, and in carving out a career...”

JUSTIN SMITH

“I am very community minded, and so I was a little bit worried that it might not feel like a community— and nothing could be further from the truth.”

The family settled in, taking part in so many facets of Whistler life— the school, the sports teams, the volunteer organizations.

When a change in employment meant Jeremy had to take a job in the city, the family bought a house in West Vancouver—but their hearts never left Whistler and they kept their home here, spending as many weekends in the mountains as possible.

So, the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 was serendipitous, in a way.

“We realized there was absolutely no reason for us to be in the city, especially in those first three months, where no one was able to do anything or go anywhere,” Jen says.

“By the time June came around, we realized we never needed to go back. So we sold our house (in West Vancouver), and Jeremy has been working remotely since March 2020.”

The pandemic afforded another realization, too, Jen says—about the strength of Whistler as a community.When the resort closed down in March 2020, Jen helped launch a meal program to benefit both local healthcare workers and struggling restaurant owners.

“If there was any doubt in my mind about ever living again full time [in Whistler], those first months of COVID fully showed me what the community is.”

BEST OF ALL WORLDS

For Justin and Julia Smith, the move to Whistler from their home in Dallas, Texas began with an extended vacation some 10 years ago.

A ski racer in his younger days, Justin was familiar with the resort— though he had a similar realization to Jen Black’s after the move.

“I was really shocked to see how many people really lived here and were making a run at raising their kids here, and in carving out a career, which also allowed them to have the mountain lifestyle,” Justin says.

The family’s move to Whistler didn’t happen all at once. An initial “extended vacation” was followed by four more trips the next year— one in each season—and then a full-time move.

They’ve also moved around inside Whistler itself, from a condo, to a family home in Whistler Cay, to a certifiable dream home in Stonebridge (formerly owned by Grammy-award-winning musician Sarah McLachlan).

“At the beginning it was never meant to be a permanent move … and then all of a sudden, 10 years later, we’re still here,” Justin says. “Our kids love the schools; it’s been an amazing place to raise a family.”

With its roughly 14,000 or so permanent residents, and its three million (pre-COVID) annual visitors, Whistler offers the best of all worlds for a young family, he adds.

AARON MITTLER WITH NINEYEAR-OLD LUCY ON THE PATIO OF THEIR CHAMONIX CRESCENT HOME. “It had that small-town feel, but it didn’t feel like we were growing up in a really rural environment.”

And of course, being a former competitive ski racer, the mountain offerings don’t hurt either.

“If you look at the total picture, having had the opportunity to ski all the major resorts in North America, multiple times, I think [Whistler’s skiing] is the best, hands down,” Justin says. COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS

Growing up in Vancouver, Aaron Mittler was no stranger to Whistler—but his trips here became less frequent when he moved to Toronto in 2001.

Mittler met his wife Mary Sanagan in Toronto, and the couple soon had two daughters, but by about 2016, the young family started to feel the pull of the West Coast, and before long they had bought a place in Whistler.

“We would do Christmas and spring break and some time in the summer (when we lived in Toronto), and then our kids loved that so much that we ended up getting a bigger place, which we just closed on in the fall of 2019,” Aaron says.

“I guess probably deep down we bought the place in Whistler hoping (we) could bring the family back West eventually—but then the pandemic just accelerated that.”

The family was enjoying a nice spring break reprieve from the city when COVID brought the world to a standstill, effectively making their choice for them—and they’ve been Whistlerites ever since.

“We were not prepared for it, at all, because we left our house in Toronto expecting to be back there in two weeks,” Aaron says.

The pandemic also presented some interesting lessons about the importance (or lack thereof) of material things, he adds.

“What we learned was that we had a house full of stuff back in Toronto, but besides some sentimental items, none of it was important—we didn’t really need any of it,” he says.

“Obviously we had our house (in Whistler), and it was furnished, so it was a place to live, but that’s kind of all we needed, you know?”

Still, the pandemic also made it more difficult for the family to fully settle into Whistler as a community.

“It probably prevented us from learning about [the community] as quickly as we might have otherwise, but now that we’re back in business, so to speak, I think we’re really getting involved with it, which is great,” he says, noting that one of his two daughters plays hockey in Whistler, while both are in ski lessons and have made friends in town.

“It’s taken a while because of the lockdowns, but now we’re pretty fully integrated into the community, and it’s awesome. It’s really great.” W

EXPERIENCE MOUNTAIN GOLF AT ITS FINEST

Dramatic natural landscapes, stunning views and wildlife are signatures of the Robert Trent Jones Jr designed, Audubon certified Fairmont Chateau Whistler Golf Club. Top it off with unmatched course-side dining at the Clubhouse and you’re in for for the ultimate day of golf in Whistler