$600 in firewood stolen from Sharbot Lake High School

Jeff Green | May 24, 2012

Over the weekend a rough, hand painted sign was put up facing Road 38 at the edge of the parking lot next to Sharbot Lake High School. “Free Wood” is all it said.

The wood supposedly being offered for free was from trees that had been taken down last week by hydro crews and students in the Specialist High Skills Forestry Major program, which the school has been running as a pilot project since last year. Clearing the trees on the hill was the first piece of work in a construction project that will see a new school built where the parking lot now stands. The school will jut into the hill.

It was not the school, nor the forestry students who put up the sign, however. That was done as a prank, or as a cover for a thief who made off with some or all of the wood.

“There was about $600 worth of wood there, and the students had already split a lot of it up. They were going to sell it and put the money towards buying a chipper for their program,” said School Principal Heather Hyatt.

Hyatt is asking anyone who may have taken some wood, thinking it was free, to either return it or compensate the program with a donation.

“We won’t have any luck with the person who is behind this,” said Hyatt, "but maybe there is someone who didn’t know the wood was supposed to be for sale and will come forward."

Although upset about the loss of the wood, Hyatt is happy with the success the school has had with the forestry major program. There are 17 in the class, eight grade 11 and nine grade 10 students who will be graduating this year. Students in the program take their academic prerequisite programs in the fall, and the specialist forestry courses in the spring semester.

Three instructors, Lyle Young, Ben Moser and Wade Leonard teach the courses, and guest instructors from industry are brought in as well. Courses include science and machining, transportation and forestry technology. Students also receive chainsaw certification, and a number of safety and other certifications that they would normally have to seek out and pay for after graduation.

“When they finish this series of courses, they are ready for the work force. The program is a wonderful addition to our offerings at SLHS,” said Hyatt, who added that many of the school's grade 10 students have opted for the forestry major next year.

“Even those who don’t go into forestry will be able to use the skills in future,” she said. “But because the program is new, we struggle with finances for extra equipment that isn’t covered by our funding. It was disappointing to say the least when we found all the wood was gone after the long weekend.”

Sharbot Lake High School can be reached at 613-279-2131.