CLUB HISTORY

 

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YEAR 1, 2003 & 2004

Mr. Shepardson, a middle school teacher, started an outdoor club known as the Outing Club at Lenox Middle and High School. Once it was started he had Mr. Sanders, another middle school    teacher, help out. Mr.Shepardson  started this club because a bunch of kids were bored over the week ends and he thought that it might be a good idea to start a club that would involve canoeing, hiking , camping, biking, walking dogs. This year was the trial run for the club which only allowed eighth graders. 

                In early October of 2003 the Outing Club took its very first trip, canoeing down the Housatonic River. We started at Decker’s Launching Pad on New Lenox Road in Lenox and canoed to Woods Pond in Lenox Dale. On this trip we saw much nature, like birds and beavers. We also saw a lot of garbage in the river which gave Mr. Shepardson and Mr. Sanders an idea to do a Housatonic River garbage trip to clean up the garbage in the river. The kids that went on this trip were Dan Lane, Kevin Turner, Eric Kirby, Kyle Huber, Riley Cook and Eric Trancynger and the Advisors were Mr. Shepardson and Mr. Sanders

Our second trip in October of the same year was a river clean up trip. During our clean up we found a gas tank, flat screen TV, footballs, food containers, beer bottles and much more stuff. This was the worst trip of the school year because a lot of the boys were not doing what they were told. A lot of them fell in the river and two boys were on the side of the river bank and the canoe started to float away from the river bank. Everyone in the club laughed including those two boys. So I had to get there canoe back to them. Students that went on this trip were Dan Lane, Kevin Turner, Tony Valone, Eric Trancynger, Kyle Huber, and Eric Kirby and Erica Prentice and the advisors are Mr. Shepardson and Mr. Sanders.

 

The third trip, in November of the same year, was an October Mountain hike. The purpose of this trip was to act out the history of the Tories Cave. The cave got its name from a man who sided with the Tories, American colonists who sided with England during the American Revolution. Gideon Smith, a Tory, hid in the cave to get away from his neighbors who supported the Revolution.

 This trip to Tory Cave, located off Roaring Brook Road in Lenox, consisted of 8th graders. Michael Lane, an 8th grader, came on this trip to film it and took photos of our little play and about Tories Cave and the British and Tories.  The Students that went are Dan Lane, Kevin Turner, Tony Valone, Eric Trancynger and Kyle Huber. The advisors that went are Mr. Shepardson and Mr. Sanders.

Our forth trip was at the end of November 2003 and it was our seconded October Mountain hike and this time we hiked up to a spot where we had started a camp fire and roasted marshmallows and hotdogs. On this trip we had a little accident because one of the boys were acing up and decided to play with fire and set an area on fire and we had to put it out immediately. Students that went are Dan Lane, Tony Valone, Kyle Huber, Bob Fuore, and Nico Johnson. Advisors that went Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders

Our fifth trip was in January 2004 and it was our first Kennedy park dog walk trip. This trip the students were allowed to bring there dogs and walks them around the trails. Our meeting spot was at the Lenox House Country Shops. We then hiked up to the Gazebo in Kennedy Park and after that we spent time walking the trails of Kennedy Park. Dan Lane, Kevin Turner, Tony Valone, Kyle Huber, Eric Kirby and Eric Trancynger. Advisors that went on this trip Mr. Shepardson Mr. Sanders.

Our sixth trip and last one of the school year was our camping trip. This one was the most interesting because we were so disorganized. We had to drink out of bowls because Mr. Shepardson forgot the cups, and we ran out of plates and so we had to use the same plates for the meal after meal, and we were drinking coffee and hot chocolate out of paper cups and they were melting so we had to put two under the one that we were drinking out of, Some of the students were not behaving and were yelled at, some of the food had to be remade because it was burned and someone forgot the worms for fishing so we had to dig for them in the ground and that was awful. At night we stated a camp fire and sat around and after that we went in our tents and went to sleep. The next morning we all woke up and had breakfast and packed up and that was the end of the year one Outing Club. Students that went Dan Lane, Kevin Turner, Tony Valone, Eric Trancynger, Eric Kirby and Kyle Huber.

YEAR 2, 2004 & 2005

The seconded year in October 2004 the Outing Club started with two new permanent directors Dan Lane and Mrs. Bedichek. Mr. Noble and Mrs. Farris joined for one trip only. Dan Lane, a ninth grader, was asked by Mr. Shepardson to be an advisor, which he accepted.  Mrs. Bedichek, A seventh grade teacher was also asked to be an advisor. So the 2004 Outing Club had four advisors named, Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, Dan Lane, and Mrs. Bedichek. We also Opened it up to 7th graders

In October 2004 we had our third canoe trip. This year’s group of students was much better because they followed directions and they were much better at canoeing. It started the same way as last’ years trip. We started at Decker’s Launching Pad and ended up at woods pond. Students that went were Jaime Labier, Nicole Pandell, Alex Moorhead, Ingrid Salazar, Dane McDaniel, and Nick Bertelli. Advisors that went Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, Dan Lane, Mrs. Bedichek and Mr. Farris.

In October 2004 we had our fourth canoe trip but this one was another river clean up. This time we found foot balls, flat screen TV’s, pair of shoes. This one was really cold. No one fell in and I think we got much more garbage than we did in year one. We got one whole section cleaned and it just looked very good. Students that went Nicole Pandell, Ali Flynn, Nick Bertelli, Andrew Levesque, Dane McDaniel, Ingrid Salazar and Alex Morehead. Advisors that went Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, Dan Lane, Mrs. Bedichek, and Mr. Noble.  

In November 2004 we had an October Mountain Hike. We all met at St. Helena’s Chapel and from there Mr. Shepardson and Mr. Sanders and Mrs. Bedichek transported us to October Mountain. Once we got there we hiked up to a spot where we started a camp fire and roasted marshmallows and hot dogs. The group had a really good time. Parts of the trails were really hard because parts of it were really steep hills and the other thing is that we had to sometimes walk in water or walk on stones to get to the other side. Students that went were Jaime Labier, Nicole Pandell, Ingrid Salazar, Alex Morehead, Andrew Levesque, Mark Zink and Nick Bertelli. Advisors that went were- Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, Dan Lane and Mrs. Bedichek. 

In November 2004 the Outing Club took a trip to Kennedy Park. Just like last year’s Kennedy Park we allowed students to bring there own dogs. We started at a new meeting place. Instead of starting at The Lenox house Country Shops we met at the Kennedy Park parking lot that is located on West Mountain Road. We then hiked from there to an over look and a Gazebo. After that we walked up a hard trail called Hemlock. Hemlock Trail is actually the hardest trail in Kennedy Park. The worst thing about it was that we walked up it in the winter time when there was a lot of snow on it.  Students that went were Jaime Labier, Nicole Pandell, Nick Bertelli, Andrew Levesque, Alex Morehead, Ingrid Salazar and Mark Zink. Staff that went- Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, and Dan Lane. 

In April 2005 the Outing Club went to Fernam Dam and picked up garbage along side the dirt road. We met at St Helena’s Chapel on New Lenox Road. This trip had to end ˝ hour early because one of the kids got cut by glass because they were not following rules. At the end of this trip we all went back to the church. Once back there Mrs. Bedichek and Dan Lane went to Arizona Pizza and brought back two boxes of pizzas for lunch. Students that went on this trip were Jaime Labier, Nicole Pandell, Ingrid Salazar, Nick Bertelli, Alex Morehead, and Andrew Levesque. Staff that went were Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, Dan Lane, and Mrs. Bedichek  

In June 2005 the Outing Club had a camping trip in the woods of October Mountain and this was our last trip of the school year. This camping trip went much more smoothly because I organized everything this time. People were following directions and Mr. Shepardson broke Mr. Noble’s tent pole. This year there was a spot in the brook where the water was deep enough for people to swim around. At night we all sat around the fire and after that we went to bed. In the morning we woke up, ate breakfast, and packed up, and went fishing. At 11:00 AM we left. Students that went- Jaime Labier, Nicole Pandell, Alex Morehead, Andrew Levesque, and Nick Bertelli.  Staff that went on this trip were Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, Dan Lane, and Mrs. Bedichek

 

YEAR 3, 2005 & 2006

The Third year of the Outing Club was different because we lost Mrs. Bedichek and we lost the camping trip due to a staff conflict. Dan Lane continued as a staff member. He also became supply manager and one of the trip coordinators. We started off with one new trip. This year was not really an interesting year at all and the staff would have to say that this year’s club was not the best because most of our trips only had three kids.

In October 2005 the Outing Club went to Monument Mountain. This was not a dog walk trip because the trails were steep and hard to navigate. We started from the bottom of the mountain and worked our way up to the top. Once we got up to the top we took a brake and enjoyed the view. Then we went back to the cars. Students that went on this trip- Milton Jewell, Jesse Robins, and Nicole Pandell. Advisors that went- Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, and Dan Lane.

In October 2005 the Outing Club took a canoe trip on the Housatonic River. This trip was not really fun because we only had two students and it was raining and very muddy. This day was also cold and foggy. We started from Decker’s Launching Pad on New Lenox RD and paddled up stream for 2 hours then we headed back.  Students that went Jesse Robins and Nicole Pandell. Advisors that went Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, and Dan Lane.

On November 2005 the Outing Club went for a hike on October Mountain. We met at ST. Helena’s Chapel on New Lenox Road then we were transported over by Mr. Shepardson and Mr. Sanders. Once we got there we started to hike the trails. We stopped along side a famous cave called Tory Cave. We then hiked up to a spot where we started a camp fire and roasted hotdogs and marshmallows. We also had a behavior issue on that trip. After that we all put the fire then headed back to the cars. Students that went are- Milton Jewell, Jesse Robins, and Nicole Pandell. 

On January, March, April, and May the Outing Club took a lot of Kennedy Park dog walk trips. These trips are what made this club lose a lot of kids and also kids were busy with sports and other things. We met at the Kennedy Park parking lot that is located on West Mountain Road. We then hike from there to an over look and a gazebo. After that we walked up a hard trail called Hemlock. Hemlock Trail is actually the hardest trail in Kennedy Park. The worst thing about it was that we walked up it in the winter time when there was a lot of snow on it. But we still had a great time. Students that went on this trip are Blake Poore, Liz Wilkerson, Maggie Mitts, Sarah Novotanay, Rachel Dimouro Breana Staszowski, Kristin Heath, Beca Carberry, Katie Connell Sarah Clifford, Milton Jewell and Nicole Pandell  Advisors that went Mr.Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, and Dan Lane

        Instead of going to Kennedy Park we went hiking on the Fire tower. The first Fire Tower trip was not fun at all because it was raining and a dog got stuck in the mud and there was only one person on that trip. The seconded was ok but not the best. This time there was no rain. It was a cloudy day and the trails were full of mud. There were a lot of puddles and one of the dogs got hit by a porcupine. Students that went on these two trips are Sarah Clifford and Maggie Mitts.  Advisors that went Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, and Dan Lane

YEAR 4, 2006 & 2007

This Year was the best year out of all of the other years despite that we did not have the camping trip. It was so great because this was the first year that we have had more students than we ever had before except for one trip this year. Dan Lane became the Assistant Club Director and the Outing Club got this web site in Early December. This year we opened the club to all students in middle school. This web site was created and maintained by Dan Lane and still is.

 

On September 23 2006 the Outing Club had its very first bike trip. Everyone met at Woods Pond in Lenox Dale. Then we road our bikes through Roaring Brook Road. We finally came to a spring where students could drink out of. We then came to a trail head where a famous cave named Tory Cave was. Then after that we rode all the way to St.Helena’s Chapel where students got picked up. The road was very muddy and there were a lot of hills and a lot of bumps in the road. This was a very cloudy day and it was cold but over all everyone had a great time. The students that went on this trip were Patrick Conlon, C.J Meczywor, Lauren Bartini, Michael Lomaglio, Andrew Woodger, Robert Navarino, and Tristan Vaber .Advisors that went  were Mr.Shepardson Mr. Sanders, Dan Lane, and Mr. Noble

        On October 4th 2006 the Outing Club had a dog walk trip at Kennedy Park. We met at the Kennedy Park parking lot on West Mountain Road. We hiked to an overlook and then to a gazebo. This trip was interesting because everywhere we went on the trails we ran into horses. So we had to get over to a side and hold on to the dogs. On the way back two boys named Patrick Conlon and C.J Meczywor were teasing me about dating a girl and I was about to throw them both in the brook on the side of the trail. We passed by an old burned down hotel named Shadow Brook on the way to a nice overlook. We call it an over look because it has a view of Richmond. The students that went on this trip were Patrick Conlon, C.J Meczywor, Lauren Bartini, Jeffery Kane, Amy Kane, Ryan Schwendenmann, Rachel Dimouro and Ellana Kelsey.  The Advisors that went were Mr.Shepardson, Mr. Sanders and Dan Lane. 

        On Saturday October 21 2006 the Outing Club had a canoe trip down the Housatonic River to Woods Pond. We all met a Decker’s launching Pad on New Lenox Road. The water was so high that the sides of the river banks were under water and the water was just barley touching the launching pad. This day was really cold and it was around 10:00 Am in the Morning. I arrived at the pad with three kayaks. Once we were going down the river two students behind me decided to throw water at them selves and Mr. Shepardson and I yelled at them for that. The Students that went were on this trip were Patrick Conlon, Lior Gazit, Nick Reynolds, Rachel Dimouro, Austin Salnitis Sara Clifford, Nicole Decker, Emma Huber, Lauren Bartini and Halle Macdonald. Advisors that went were Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders and Dan Lane.   

On Saturday November 4th 2006 the Outing Club had its October Mountain hike. We hiked up to a spot where we started a nice camp fire and roasted marshmallows and hot dogs. This trip had a lot of kids in it. On this day it was really cold. On the way back some of the Students were playing too rough and one of them got hurt. We tried to go into Tory but we could not because the rocks leading to the cave were two slippery. Students that went are  Keegan Kelly, C.J Meczywor, Mat Quetti, Tristan Vaber, Spencer Wallace, Josh King, Robert Navarino, Harrison Gregg, Lior Gazit, Rachel Dimouro, Lauren Bartini, Sarah Warren, Cassie Byrnes, Cody Labier, Ryan Schwendenmann and Amy Kane. Advisors that went on this trip Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, and Dan Lane. 

On Saturday December 9th 2006 the Outing Club had its Seconded Kennedy Park dog walk trip. In this hike we tried some new trails. This trip was a little bit different because most of the students were new to this club and there were only 3 recant students. This was also a cold day because unlike the other trips there was snow on the ground. We hiked up to a nice overlook that overlooks Richmond Massachusetts. We then took a different trail that we had never took before up to the gazebo. After that we went back to the spot where the parents picked up there students. Students that went are- Max Dakin, Connor O’Brien, Lior Gazit, Lauren Bartini, Liz Wilkerson, Breana Staszowski, Alexia Bowden, Leal carter, Harrison Gregg, and Amy Kane. Advisors that went are- Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, Dan Lane and Mrs. Fraser.   

On Saturday April 28th the Outing Club had its last Kennedy Park. This trip we only had two students because Mr. Sanders was not able to hand out the permission slips and because this was our third Kennedy Park Trip. On this trip was went on a variety of trails and the worst part was one the trails was destroyed when a construction group tore it down to build condos but we had a great time. There was one student that I have not seen since the canoe trip in October and it was really good to see him again. Students that went on this trip were Patrick Conlon and Ryan Schwendenmann. Advisors that went on this trip are Mr. Shepardson and Dan Lane. 

On Thursday June 7th the Outing Club had an after school bike trip on Roaring Brook Road. We started from Lenox Memorial Middle and High School at 3:00 Pm this was also our last one of the school year. We had a great time on this trip. This time the sun was out and it was a hot day. We also stopped at Tory Cave to see it and Pick up was at St.Helena’s Chapel at 4:15 Pm.  Students that went on this trip were Patrick Conlon, Andrew Woodger, and Robert Navarino. Advisors that went on this trip were Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, and Dan Lane.              

YEAR 5, 2007 & 2008

This year we have added a new bike trip called West Mountain Road Biking. Again we did not have the camping trip this school year but we hope to have it back next year. We would like to welcome Mr. Knodler and Mrs. Salvie as new teachers to  the club as advisor helpers.  

On Saturday September 22nd 2007 The Outing Club had a bike trip on West Mountain Road. We started from Arizona Pizza and from there we road our bikes on West Mountain and took a few other backs roads. We ended up at Betty’s Pizza for lunch.  It was a nice day outside and the sun was shining and over all everyone had a great time. Students that went on this trip were Patrick Conlon, C.J Meczywor, Ryan Schwendenmann, Andrew Woodger, Austin Salnitis, Eric Lomaglio, Ryan Hurley, John Hurley, Robert Navarino, Harrison Gregg, and Sean O’Brien.   Advisors that went on this trip were Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders and Dan Lane

        On Saturday October 20th the Outing Club had a canoe trip down the Housatonic River. It was a nice day and not as cold as last year the students enjoyed it and we only had about 6 students that went. Half way down the river we stopped paddling to listen to the nature but other than that we all had a great time. Students that went were Patrick Conlon, Max Dakin, Adina Friedman, Christina Sample, Kyle Marcantel, and Dani Clifford Advisors that went on this trip were Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, and Dan Lane.

        On Saturday November 3rd the Outing Club had a dog walk to Kennedy Park. This day was really cold and not many showed up. We went on a trail that was basically the hardest one in Kennedy Park. We also hiked to a spot that overlooked Richmond where we took a break and then we hiked back to the parking lot and everyone had a great Time. Students that went were Geoffrey Carter, Eric Lomaglio, Kyle Marcantel, Cam Marcantel, Charlotte Freifeld, Avi Sternberg, Emily Ellis, Advisors that went were Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, Dan Lane and Mrs. Fraser

        On Sunday November 18th the Outing Club had its last trip of the season. We went for a hike on October Mountain and once we got to a spot we roasted hot dogs and marshmallows over a small camp fire. We also visited Tory Cave and everyone that went had a great time coming. Advisors that came Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, Dan Lane, and Mrs. Salvie. Students that went Patrick Conlon, Max Dakin, Harry Hale, Christina Sample, Andrew Woodger Devon Alden, Liz Barry, Kristen Read, Emily Halford, Ryan Swendenmann, and Mat Salvie a special Guest. 

      On Sunday March 2nd 2008 the Outing Club had a winter hike up October Mountain; this was a really cold day. We did the same thing as the last October Mountain trip but this time we took a different trail that leads circular around October Mountain. Starting a campfire was much easier than we thought. The hike was hard even though we were on snow shoes there was a lot of snow and ice sinking into our boots but other than that everyone had a great time. Students that went Max Dakin, Logan Finn, Ben Macdonald, Jon Hurley and Ryan Hurley. Advisors that went were Mr. Shepardson, Dan Lane, and Mr. Knodler.

      On Saturday May 17th the Outing Club had a clean up on Roaring Brook Road. This was also our last trip of the school year. This was also a town clean up so the town was also helping us at times. We found a lot of trash and all of us thought that it was terrible to see this much trash lying around. It was also a nice warm day. We started off at Mr. Shepardson grandmother’s house on Roaring Brook Road and we also ended up there and had pizza for lunch. So everyone had a great time.  Advisors that went are Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, Dan Lane and Mr. Noble. Students that went Tristan Vaber, Robert Navarino, Sara Warren, Ryan Schwendenmann, and Amy Cane. 

YEAR 6, 2008 & 2009

        This Year Dan Lane has got a position in this club as Co. Director and still remains as the web site maintainer. But other than that the staff still remains the same.

On Saturday September 20th 2008 the Outing Club had a bike ride. We  road the back roads of Under Mountain Road, Reservoir Road, and West Mountain. We road all the way to Arizona Pizza where we ate lunch. There were a lot of hills and at times a few students were struggling, but other than that the weather was perfect and everyone had a great time.  Staff that went Mr. Shepardson, Mr. Sanders, and Dan Lane. Students that went were Patrick Conlon, David Conlon, Ryan Schwendenmann, Devon Alden, Billy Nutbrown, Chris Zaffanella, Dillon Benham, Cam Marcantel, and Kyle Marcantel.          

SCHOOL PROJECTS

Notice to all Middle and high school Students and Outing Club Members if you are doing a project on the Outing Club or a similar thing to it then this page and the whole website is a great way to get information. Also Please site your source by coping and pasting the Works Consulted section just below onto your paper.

 

WORKS CONSULTED

Websites: www.lenoxps.org, Student Activities, Outing Club, Club History.