This is the 80th article in Bears Doing Big Things, a weekly column celebrating the stories of notable M-A alumni.
“I was studying to be a math teacher,” Julia Marks ‘18 said. Now a wildland firefighter for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service, Marks is dedicated to enhancing the safety of agricultural areas from wildfire risk.
Marks grew up in Menlo Park in a lively and outdoorsy household with an older brother and two younger sisters. She attended Oak Knoll Elementary and Hillview Middle School, participated in Girl Scouts, and loved camping as a child.
At M-A, Marks was involved in all aspects of student life. “I was in the orchestra and played violin for all four years of high school, and I was a very competitive tennis player,” she said.
Marks enjoyed her English classes, especially AP English Language and Composition with John McBlair. “My English teachers throughout high school definitely pushed me to become a better writer. They gave me vital skills in creative writing and much of the free writing I do now is based on the skills I gained during those classes,” she said.
Upon graduating, Marks attended Bowdoin College as an intended math major for two years until taking a year off of school after COVID-19 had hit. During her time off, Marks worked a variety of jobs, including one as a firefighter in the Western Colorado Conservation Corps, a non-profit organization that has multiple programs that give the young adults the opportunities to serve on regional land conservation projects.
Marks was specifically trained in wildfire suppression tactics and was involved in fuel reduction projects in the western Colorado area that involved reducing overgrown vegetation that could fuel possible fires. “Through that program I got exposed to wildland fire as a career option. I then went to get basic fire qualification training and mentorship on how to apply for federal wildfire land jobs,” Marks explained.
In the fall of 2021, Marks transferred to UC Berkeley and changed her major to environmental science after realizing she wanted to pursue a field aligned with her newfound interests. After Berkeley, Marks began working for the Forest Service with a crew called the “Boise Hotshots” in Garden Valley, Idaho, who work in the most demanding and hazardous conditions to fight the fires they are assigned to. Marks is now working her second fire season with them.
“I work in a 20-person crew, and it’s pretty unmatched when it comes to long hours of work. Sometimes I work 21 days on with only three days off,” she said. “It can be physically and mentally challenging at times, but it’s special to work with other people around me who are as motivated to put in the work and keep going like I am. We essentially lift each other up.”
When asked about memorable moments on the job, she said, “Four days ago on the Wapiti fire in Idaho, we worked all day on an indirect piece of fireline, prepping an area of the road we thought might end up on fire. We ended up working a 16-hour shift on that fire. Around 9 p.m., another fire started nearby, and we worked on it until 4 a.m.”
“Working mostly around fires has made their flames at night the most fascinating thing to me. The skyline is lit up orange with the trees torching out. You get an ember wash, and it looks like it’s raining fire. It’s probably my favorite thing to see while working,” she said.
Marks’ advice to current M-A students: “Don’t be afraid of change and make decisions that follow your passions. Life is open to readjustment, its never too late to start something new.”
Marks’ advice to aspiring firefighters: “Find a mentor who can help guide you through the ins and outs of the initial application process. Also, getting experience with outdoor work through a Conservation Corps program or something similar would be a good starting point.”
