Some 350 youth and their leaders reaped the rewards of selfless service during a recent youth conference mountainside clean-up campaign.

The group, members of the West Jordan Utah Mountain View Stake, spent June 14 clearing dead and living foliage from around mountain homes and former homes devastated late last summer by a 3,000-acre wildfire near here.The blaze claimed 18 mountain homes and, most significantly, the lives of two firefighters. Many property owners are rebuilding, and there is a need to clear out burned areas to encourage new growth. There also is a push by the Utah Division of State Lands and Forestry to clear vegetation from around buildings to create "defendable space" should another fire strike in the future.

The cleanup was conducted under the direction of district forester Dale Jablonski and Louis Cardon, president of the Swiss Mountain Estates Homeowners Association. Brother Cardon and his wife, Robyn, lost their cabin in the fire and are in the process of rebuilding. The couple are members of the Cherry Hill 5th Ward, Orem Utah Cherry Hill Stake.

"These young people will never know what good they are doing today," praised Sister Cardon, wiping away a tear. "It's just wonderful."

Brother Cardon, who was cutting dead wood with a chainsaw, said the workers were like "an army of ants. They have just devoured the work, and now I've got to work through lunch to get ahead of them."

During the weeks before the fire, Sister Cardon had learned to use a band saw and had cut more then 200 wooden gingerbread men throughout the summer to decorate their cabin. Brother Cardon had sanded them before Sister Cardon gave them all three coats of paint. They put them up on a Friday, and they burned with the cabin on Sunday.

"There went my whole summer, but we can laugh about it now," she said.

In addition to the service project, the June 13-15 youth conference included a visit to a water park and a meeting with Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin of the Council of the Twelve. Elder Wirthlin met the group at the new Midway Utah Stake center for a mid-morning testimony meeting on Saturday, June 15.

The apostle compared the ravages of the fire with those that often come into people's personal lives.

"At the end of last summer, we watched, along with many of you, with anxious eyes the devastating forest fire on the mountains west of Midway," he reflected. "We mourned with those that lost their homes or summer homes and grieved at the loss of life in that tragedy. . . .

"Many times in our lives we have `forest fires,' or great devastating trials. We cannot understand how the Lord could allow pain and sorrow to come into our lives. Adversity, hardships, setbacks, disappointments and handicaps are all a part of life, which help bring out our real character. Misfortunes and unexpected disasters can become the turning points in our lives."

Elder Wirthlin told the youth that the "forest fires" of life occur in a variety of ways.

"Our proving grounds may vary. We may be born with physical limitations; we may have poor health; we may be lonely; we may have adverse economic conditions; we may lack good parental example.

"But whatever those proving grounds may be, whatever the trials we may be called to pass through, as time elapses, we may see silver linings in those dark clouds. We may see the new growth on the forest floor of our lives, and we will be grateful for what we have learned, and for the spiritual rejuvenation to our souls."

At the outset of the conference, prior to leaving West Jordan for the Midway area, the group viewed videotapes of the fire with forestry personnel, who also provided training on cleanup procedures and safety. Division of State Lands and Forestry workers also did mammoth amounts of cutting during the project - the mountain was abuzz with chainsaws - and hauled out mountains of debris in large dump trucks.

Forester Dick Klason assisted with the cleanup effort. "I think this is a great project," he noted, watching youth and adults piling large burned tree limbs to be trucked out. "As one homeowner said, there was no way they were ever going to get this kind of stuff done, so they are very appreciative that they can get this kind of help."

Stake president Max A. Jensen boosted the spirits of tired workers by appearing as "Smokey the Bear" during the day.

Mike Lasater, 15, a teacher in the Mountain View 6th Ward, summed up the feelings of the youth participating: "I'm having a good time helping out."