Get Outside with Outdoor Club
By Gabe Bree
As you know, Cody High School offers a plethora of club and activity options to choose from. Luckily for us, as the student body, there is almost no limit to what we can try, learn, and do. Now the place we live in is pretty special. Cody, Wyoming offers so many outdoor activities it’s not even funny. From backpacking, hunting, fishing, and hiking to rafting, bouldering, caving, rock climbing, biking, and skiing, there are endless options in our neck of the woods.
That just so happens to be the CHS Outdoor Club’s passion and purpose. Established in 2005 by Dean Olenik, whose whole goal was to help kids fall in love with the outdoors and learn to protect it. In an interview with him, he told me that he would talk to students and they couldn’t wait to get out of Cody because “there was nothing to do.” However, in his eyes, there are so many opportunities to do cool things and he wants them to experience everything they can before leaving. Olenik also talks about how he has “a lot of faith in the leadership that we have in our Outdoor Club.” Olenik is one of the biggest contributors to the outdoor community in Cody and is an outstanding example for all.
Bliss Bonner a co-president has had a love for the outdoors since she was little. When she first went into high school and learned about the Outdoor Club, she instantly fell in love with what they were trying to accomplish and their activities. Not only in school has she participated in outdoor activities but in the summer she is an avid backpacker and also works with the Absaroka Bat Census. She hikes through the high country with census gear looking for bats and giving back to the outdoor community.
McCoy Banks a co-president is the president of the Outdoor Club and a crucial member in planning the outdoor adventures. Banks’ favorite activity is climbing; both rock and ice. He has been climbing his whole life but has gotten serious in the last four seasons. Banks has taken Outdoor Club climbing, bouldering, and ice climbing excursions to the next level. With his foot in the door of the ice climbing world, he made it possible for the Outdoor Club to go ice climbing, which is usually insanely hard to start up because there are so many expenses. McCoy started as a freshman in the Outdoor Club and quickly made his way up to a leadership position. From the beginning, he has wanted to point the club in a positive direction and get people outside. His goal is to encourage more people to climb and get them outdoors.
Other than participating in activities, the Outdoor Club enjoys giving back to the community. Every year they help Trout Unlimited with the fish rescue in the canals. In the fall, when it is time to stop irrigating and farming the dam decreases the CFS to just over a third of what it was before, they also cut off the canals. Over the summer fish find their way into the canals from the river, when they drain the canals these fish are left to die, SoTrout Unlimited goes through and shocks the fish and replaces them in the river.
Dean Olenik, Alec Giacoletto, and Dan Cossaboon are the current leaders and advisors of the Outdoor Club. They have contributed many hours of their time to the club and they are very dedicated to helping the students grow not only in the outdoors but in their lives as well.
Alec Giacoletto has been teaching for three years now and has been helping with logistics and planning since the beginning. He is an avid fisherman and enjoys carrying on conversations and teaching fly-tying for Outdoor Club members on cold winter days.
Dan Cossaboon is the current school psychologist. He has generously contributed hours of climbing instruction to the club and making everyone safer. Mr. Cossaboon brings a very fun and enjoyable personality to add to the already fun activities that the club participates in.
The Outdoor Club has opened many doors and opportunities for students and kids at Cody High School. The teachers and students involved create an environment that includes all and is fun to be around. Since 2005 they have been helping people push through their mental boundaries and find new things to love and enjoy. I would consider joining the Outdoor Club and having a great time. Take some advice from the Outdoor Club motto and “Get Out!”