THE BACKGROUND

Steve Law was raised in a forest environment. Growing up, the Law's family vacations were camping at such places as Canada Falls, Seboomook Dam, or First or Second Roach Ponds. Those places Law's father fondly remembered from his early days working the logging camps from 1913 to 1923. When he was old enough, Steve went into the woods behind a pair of horses and using a cross-cut saw. After college, he went to work for the United States Forest Service as a civil engineer. Law wanted to share some of his experience with young and old people alike, who do not have the opportunity he had. The farm itself has a history of "Low Impact Logging," growing Christmas trees and, in general, concern for all the natural resources.

In 1987, Steve gave 80 acres of woodland and 35 acres of fields--much of the Law family farm--to Foxcroft Academy.

Law's vision for the land was, and still is, to give all children in the area an opportunity to learn about the forest in an objective setting. He wanted to make sure the students' attention was caught and held throughout their school years. He believed the way to do this was to offer an incentive program whereby the students would benefit from their endeavors.

This concept did not mesh well with the school's established curriculum, so Foxcroft Academy deeded the property through NREC back to the Laws, believing it to be in the best interest of everyone involved.

As time and money permits, the original plans for the land will be fulfilled. In addition, interpretive trails will be constructed along with a self-guiding tour of as many of the natural resources as can be determined.

	At left is a good example of real Low Impact Logging. The ponies were family pets raised on the Law farm. The ponies were limited to how much they could pull but it was probably all Steve wanted to cut and load at one time.
	At left is one year's harvest of Christmas trees ready for the market. The trees are cut in late November for shipping in early to mid-December. The trees are pulled through a funnel-shaped device and the tree is wrapped with a nylon netting as it comes out the small end of the funnel.
	The trees in the photo to the left are being loaded onto a trailer truck for shipping. Depending upon the size of the trees, a tractor trailer can haul up to 1,000 wrapped Christmas trees. This load was being shipped to a private boys school in upstate New York.
	The picture to left has been borrowed from "Kids for Trees" by Jim Chandler, Oxford County Soil and Water Conservation District, 1 Main Street, South Paris, Maine 04281. The picture shows young, newly planted trees such as those that will be planted and cared for by children who participate in the Kids and Trees Growing Together program.

Above is a recent photo showing the Kids For Trees program for the Bethel School District. Although the active program is stalled for the lack of professional guidence, the seniors at the school still harvest quite a few trees each year. The profits go toward a "Drug Free Celebration each year.

Soon after the program started, it became apparent that all trees will not grow at the same rate. Instead of each student caring for a particular tree, the "class" plants the trees as a single project. In the above photo, all the trees are the same age.

Meanwhile, "back at the ranch" or in this case, back at the farm, the above photo is taken from the home farm building lot looking east. The property line is just about the tree line. It shows that a lot of site preparation work must be done before the program, "Kids and Trees Growing Together" can get under way.

The photo above shows similar growth in the fields looking toward the west.

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