A safe upbringing for children and exciting career development

That the Lech family ended up in Torsby was probably a fortunate coincidence.

They had started talking about moving to a smaller town when their family grew to four, and they first considered areas outside Örebro, where they were living at the time.

Then a vacant archivist position appeared in Torsby that matched Kicki’s education and qualifications perfectly.

– So I asked Markus, perhaps partly as a joke, if he wanted to come along to Torsby. And then everything happened at rocket speed. I applied for the job in April, got the position, and within two months we had sold our house in Örebro and bought a new one in Torsby, Kicki says.

For Markus, who was a trained teacher, it was relatively easy to find a job.

– I received several offers and accepted a position as a lower secondary school teacher at Frykenskolan in Torsby.

Markus comes from a small community outside Örebro, and Kicki grew up in Åmål with a connection to northern Värmland through her grandparents.

– We often visited them in Ambjörby and stayed in the summer cottage that is there, says Kicki.

But despite that, neither she nor Markus had much familiarity with the town of Torsby when the plans to move first came up.

– But we thought that since we enjoyed ourselves so much at the summer cottage in the Klarälven valley, we would probably enjoy living in Torsby as well.

Career opportunities in a smaller town

Both Kicki and Markus have seen their careers develop after moving to Torsby.

 – When you live in a smaller town, it is easier to be noticed. I have had the chance to show that I am capable of handling tasks that were outside my role as an archivist and registrar, says Kicki, and that led to me getting a new position within the municipality in 2020 as a security coordinator. It is completely different and very exciting. I work with crisis preparedness, information security, protective security, civil defence, and crime prevention. I don’t think I would have had that opportunity in an organization where people work more in strict silos. During the first two years we worked flat out managing the pandemic, and now with the changed security situation in Europe, other important priorities are emerging. It was a bit like jumping from the frying pan into the fire when I changed positions, but I was ready for new challenges, says Kicki.

After working for six months at Frykenskolan in Torsby, a principal position in the municipality was advertised, which Markus applied for — and got. This marked the beginning of a principal training program that he completed alongside his job over the course of three years.

– It felt fantastic and very rewarding to have the opportunity to take the principal training program.

He has since worked as a principal at various units until the spring of 2020, when he took up the position as Upper Secondary School Director at Stjerneskolan.

– We have students from fifty to sixty different municipalities, mainly thanks to our sports upper secondary programs and specialized sports that attract young people from all over Sweden. It’s really awesome. There is a greater mix of students than you find at most other schools in Värmland.

How has it been to be new in Torsby?

– We feel that it has been easier to become part of different social circles here. We realized early on that it’s often the same groups of parents who move between school gatherings, club activities, and other events. That makes it easier to get to know people, and people tend to talk more when they meet and are not in such a hurry to leave right afterwards either. The association life is great. Our children take part in skiing, athletics, gymnastics, and horseback riding – everything except football. If we had attended a riding school in Örebro, we would have had to drive far, and most activities have waiting lists before you can start. It’s not like that here. Leisure time is easier. You can head out and go skiing after work; it only takes ten minutes to get there and be ready to let off some steam. We often spend time up at Valberget, where there are many different training opportunities – everything from a gym and ski tunnel to illuminated trails for jogging and walks in the forest.

– We received a really warm welcome from our neighbors when we got access to the house. They came over with a basket of buns and coffee and told us to take a break from working. It was very much appreciated.

Have there been any challenges?

– The bike trailer that worked perfectly for transporting the children on flat ground in Örebro became far too heavy on the hills between our home and the children’s preschool here in Torsby. That was a bit discouraging, so we sold it. Then there are things that you’re simply expected to know – who is related to whom, who used to be married to whom, and so on, so that you don’t say the wrong thing at the wrong time. Or where places are located; it’s not always signposted, because everyone already knows. And it can be confusing when people call the hot dog stand “Me-ba” even though it clearly says Sibylla. Old names sort of live on. But you learn, and there’s something charming about all of that too. Something we thought would be a challenge was that we would have to travel far if we needed anything other than groceries. But that turned out to be completely wrong. We can find 95% of everything we need in local shops without having to travel far.