Fishing Club is one of the latest clubs to be held off-campus; its founding has brought many challenges, which its members have fully embraced.

“You miss 100% of the fish you don’t cast to,” the president of Fishing Club, sophomore Liam Balestra, said. 

Fishing Club and its sponsor, Exploratorium teacher Chris Holmes, primarily fish at Tilles Park and Forest Park, where overfishing limits the club’s success. 

“[In St. Louis], people don’t follow the rules,” Balestra said. “When [people are] not supposed to take the trout out [of the lake], they’ll take [them], and then there’s just not enough fish.” 

Sophomore Teddy Bazzani, a co-founder of Fishing Club, hypothesizes that the club being in an urban setting hinders its success.

“[In] St. Louis, the ponds are not large enough for fish to get big. We have a decent amount of fish, but they’re all tiny,” Bazzani said. 

However, Balestra believes that the experiences outweigh the challenges as the club provides real-world experience in addition to learning how to fish.  

“You have to be patient to fish,” Balestra said. “It’s important to realize that not everything good comes right away.”

Coordinator of Athletics and Activities, T’Shon Young, agrees with Balestra, believing that the adversity is worth fighting through. 

“We may not have clubs that meet people’s needs or their wants. It’s extremely important that students are able to do something they are passionate about, so everyone feels included and connected,” Young said.