In April 2005, forty-seven 6th graders from Idyllwild School participated in the 2nd annual MCFSC Healthy Forest Education Program. The goal of this program is to teach students about the dangers and benefits of fire and what citizens can do to protect their homes and communites while creating a healthy forest environment.

Through videos and class discussions the students learned about the history of fire suppression in the United States, prescribed burning, and using wood as a renewable resource for paper, building materials, heating, etc. Instructors Roberta Corbin and Larry Kueneman from the MSFSC helped students understand what they as individuals and community groups (such as the MCFSC) can do to make their homes and towns safer from the threat of wildfire and to make their local forest healthier through thinning and the use of prescribed burns.

They learned about the importance of fire to the ecosystem. One part of the program included a computer exercise where students learned what it takes to complete a successful prescribed burn by determining the moisture level in the trees, the humidity, the wind direction and velocity. They were then challenged to simulate a prescribed burn, and see how successful they could be.

The final meeting of the program was a field trip to the Pine Cover Fuel Break where some of them had participated in planting trees in April 2004 to replace the dead ones removed following the bark beetle devastation of the last few eyars. There, they observed that the success rate of the new trees was very high.

As a finale to the program, their teacher Lenore Sazer-Krebbers had them write an essay about what they had learned. Those who chose to were also encouraged to create a poster based on the program. Students submitted their essays and posters to the MCFSC for a contest. Students were awarded prizes in both the essay and poster categories. First place was $20 in cash, second place was two tickets to the Rustic Theatre, and third place was a $10 gift certificate at the Idyllwild Pharmacy.

There were 45 essays and posters submitted for the contest. The winning posters were in the window of Showtime Video in Strawberry Creek Plaza, and winning essays were published in the Idyllwild Town Crier.

Winners of the poster contest were Elizabeth Mortensen (1st place), Danielle McKnight (2nd place) and William Pielaat (3rd place). Essay winners were Logan Schelly (1st place), Josh Floquet (2nd place) and Chloe Ezelle (3rd place). Awards were presented at the school in May.