After teaching biology for 12 years in Michigan, Harlan Kredit decided to return to his hometown of Lynden, Washington. While visiting a local neighborhood stream he was alarmed to discover that Fishtrap Creek was nearly devoid of salmon. He remembered that the creek used to have huge runs of salmon every fall. At that moment he decided to "adopt" the stream and develop a long-range plan to restore the creek to its former glory. The plan would involve studying the entire watershed and would actively involve his science students in a hands-on rehabilitation effort.

In the beginning the group focused their efforts on completing a comprehensive stream survey for an 8 mile stretch of Fishtrap Creek. This first survey included information about spawning gravel, erosion control issues and stream obstructions. Over the last 30 years his students have constructed a salmon hatchery and have planted more than 18,000 trees and shrubs. The group currently hatches, raises and releases approximately 100,000 coho salmon every year. To date around 2.5 million salmon fry have been released into the watershed. At the request of the Washington State Department of Ecology and the Department of Fish and Wildlife, they have also constructed an over-wintering channel. These habitats are critical to the survival of young salmon smolts because most of the naturally occurring channels have been drained for agriculture.

The students have conducted annual aquatic insect surveys on Fishtrap Creek and the Noonsack River. For the past 16 years the students have participated in the Washington State "Adopt-A-Highway" program by adopting a four mile stretch of a road within the watershed. The group has also installed more than 1,400 warning signs reminding citizens not to dump any waste into the local streams. Signs stating "This Stream is in Your Hands" have been posted at every bridge crossing in the community. The group has also designed and distributed four educational brochures about the watershed to area schools and the local community.

Currently the students are working to remove Japanese Knotweed from the riparian zone and are developing a "Wildlife Friendly" area on a golf course directly adjacent to the stream. In order to understand and appreciate the entire watershed, the group takes an annual trip above the timberline to the headwaters of Fishtrap Creek and to the Olympic Peninsula where the stream enters the Pacific Ocean. The Salmon Enhancement Project has received funding from several sources including the Washington State Department of Ecology, the Rotary Club of Lynden and the Lynden Morning Kiwanis Club. They have also received two Toyota Tapestry grants totaling $18,000. In the last few years, the project has received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science Teaching, the Washington State Department of Ecology Environmental Excellence Award, and the International Paper Company and Conservation Fund National Environmental Education Award.

According to the NFWF, "The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation is pleased to support Lynden Christian High School's Salmon Enhancement Project. This project embodies the Foundation's mission to form strong partnerships for conservation by working to restore native fish populations."