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A big-hearted birthday wish: Quesnel girl gives back on her special day

Kersley girl spent her birthday planting trees on Green Mountain
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All nine-year-old Kaleah Wiebe wanted for her birthday on Sept. 16 was to plant trees on the fire-scorched grounds of Green Mountain.

The 1,500-hectare fire raged just three kilometres southeast of the Wiebe farm, putting the family and their livestock at risk to evacuate.

The reality of the threat to her home and having to evacuate for five days affected Kaleah in a way that inspired her to give back to the forests she and her siblings have enjoyed for most of their lives.

Kaleah’s parents, Stephanie and Daryl Wiebe, weren’t sure if they could make her wish come true. Her birthday was so soon after the Green Mountain fire that it was initially deemed unsafe to venture into the area. But Stephanie was determined to see it happen.

She had to contact the Cariboo Fire Centre and the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resources Operations to take measures that would ensure the safety of the children.

Kaleah got the official OK, and ministry officials set up an appointment to present Kaleah with a map of the Green Mountain area that highlighted the safe zones that could be replanted.

Impressed by the efforts of the young girl, SilvaGro donated 24 trees to the group.

SilvaGro CEO Andre Austin said: “To know she wanted to help with the environment [meant] that she is such a caring person with a caring heart. Whatever her dreams were, I wanted to help her achieve them.”

Kaleah, four of her friends and her two younger siblings, Austin and Bradie, were all smiles when they set out to the area. The sky was clear and the sun was bright, and when their feet hit the charred, empty slopes of the mountain, they immediately got to work putting life back into the earth.

Stephanie hopes this may start a ripple effect that could turn into a bigger effort.

“When I talked to forestry I knew I wasn’t allowed to take a big group up there,” she said. “But once the [safety of the entire area was confirmed], I talked to a couple people in the community about getting the school involved to plant more.”

The green seedlings were just barely visible against the black slope of the mountain, but were small tokens from a young girl who wanted nothing more for her birthday than to contribute to the regrowth of local forests.

Asked why she wanted to do it, Kaleah answered: “Because black isn’t a good colour, and I want to help make it beautiful again.”

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