Protecting wild sea-run fish

In 2021, Randy Ashton ’96 launched an environmentally-minded small business in Sun Valley, Idaho, focused on a single product and a special cause. A lifelong angler and seasoned entrepreneur, Ashton is the co-founder of Steely Zips, which produces a performance hoodie called “The Mule.” Designed for people who love the outdoors, and especially fishing or skiing, the waterproof and wind-resistant hooded jacket can be worn as an outer layer or as a mid layer under a shell.

As part of its marketing, Steely Zips also seeks to promote awareness about the need to protect wild stocks of sea-run fish, including Atlantic and Pacific salmon and steelhead trout, which the company says, “are in a battle for survival.”

“From overfishing stocks to dams to warming oceans, sea-run fish are not returning to their home rivers to spawn the next generation. The entire ecosystem is suffering as a result. Passionate anglers and outdoorsman need to step up,” Steely Zips says in the mission statement on its website.

Asked how the business got its start, Ashton explained that after graduating from Hampden–Sydney College in Virginia with a bachelor’s degree in history, he moved to Ketchum, Idaho, to pursue his passion to become a photographer. He worked as the assistant to legendary photographer David Stoecklein, who captured iconic images of the American West and worked with corporations such as Chevrolet and Jeep, Canon USA, and Bayer.

After graduating from Brooks Institute of Photography in

Santa Barbara, Ashton began working as a freelance photographer, and produced his first book of photographs, Fly Fishing in Idaho, published in 2006. His second book, A Celebration of Salmon Rivers, was published a year later, in collaboration with the North Atlantic Salmon Fund (NASF). It featured Ashton’s photographs, taken over a period of two years, from the 50 greatest Atlantic salmon rivers in Canada, Europe, and Russia. The foreword was written by the thenPrince of Wales, now King Charles III, and all profits were donated to help save Atlantic Salmon.

As a freelance photographer, he began submitting his work to fishing brands, but said: “It was a difficult way to make ends meet. I didn’t want to leave the lifestyle and go to the big city, so I decided to create my own company and be the photographer for it.”

He came up with the idea for an American-made clothing line, similar to Vineyard Vines, that would use eco-friendly materials such as organic cotton and recycled labels. Ashton sold that company, Collared Greens, just before the start of the global pandemic to a competitor, Chicago-based men’s apparel company, Bird Dog Bay.

Around the same time, Ashton said his friend, Riley Berman, who grew up in Sun Valley and is a “total stud fishing guide,” wanted to create a waterproof hoodie as warm and comfortable as his favorite cotton hoodie. “We created The Mule. We’re both very passionate about steelheading and that’s how we got the name, Steely Zips. We wanted to create a mid layer with some outer layer properties. If it starts to rain or it gets windy on the river, it also protects you from the elements.”

The company got off to a strong start, selling 450 units by last fall, and has added “Lids” or hats, and “Toasters,” heavyweight cotton fleece hoodies, to its lineup. Berman, who is the nephew of ESPN anchor Chris Berman, is the face of the business, the head designer, and focuses on sales, while Ashton works primarily behind the scenes, managing the marketing, social media, photography, website analytics, and shipping as well as product development.

“I learned a lot from Collared Greens,” he said, acknowledging that he scoured fabric shows and tested a variety of materials before finding the right breathable, waterproof fabric for The Mule from a private-label apparel company in Connecticut. “We design it and they go out and actually make it and build it in Mauritius. They’re sourcing the trim, labels, and tags. That way I can concentrate on the marketing and the photography side of things.”

Steely Zips markets their products directly on their website and through outdoor-themed blogs and social media. On Instagram @steelyzips showcases Ashton’s stunning photography, and the company’s YouTube channel is teeming with gorgeous fishing videos and fun “chronicles” of the company’s intern, Stod Rowley, also known as “Scooter Boy,” who is presently the only other member of the Steely Zips team.

“Word of mouth has been terrific,” Ashton said. “It’s almost a passion project for now. We’re taking it very slowly, letting the brand build. The people who buy into it early have a sense of exclusivity. If you wear it among your friends, you kind of feel good about yourself. So keeping it small for now is really our approach.”

Bigger things are on the horizon. Last spring, the Intermountain Division of the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association placed an order with Steely Zips for 400 units to give The Mule to all of its top skiers. “So that’s kind of neat,” Ashton said. “It’s great to see the U.S. Ski Team logo on The Mule.”

The company’s commitment to preservation is also in the early stages, but is evident from the mission statement on its website. “We started Steely Zips just to create a little bit of awareness for steelhead. They are in massive decline in the Pacific Northwest,” Ashton said. “We’re posting on social media. We have to bring it to people’s attention. We’re trying to get the company on stable ground. Then we can make some headway.”

This summer was a particularly busy time for Ashton, who also works as a fishing guide and Certified Casting Instructor for Silver Creek Outfitters in Sun Valley. This past summer, he met Nick Solley P’96 ’96 on a steelhead run of the Snake River. Ashton was in the same class at Gunn as Solley’s stepchildren, Clark ’96 and Emily Wierdsma ’96.

Ashton said a lot of his fellow guides are great friends and wear The Mule, and if he has a free day, he will spend it photographing people wearing his product while fishing or skiing. “I love to talk about Steely Zips and conservation when I’m out on the river. That is our approach. We are a grassroots, small, fun lifestyle brand, creating a great lifestyle hoodie for outdoor enthusiasts.”

As for what’s next, Ashton said he is interested in private label development and logo apparel and Steely Zips has a new product, a sun hoodie, that will debut in the spring. “We’re super excited about it. We’re sticking with the hoodie design but creating a sun shirt that’s more breathable for fishing guides. I didn’t think we’d be building another product this fast but our sales have been so good,” he said.

Warm welcomes

The Frederick Gunn School is pleased to announce the appointment of these new Board members.

Missy Cuello-Remley ’87 is Director of Strategic Partnerships and Programming at the New England Innovation Academy, where her focus is on strategic partnerships with corporate and educational partners, including Dartmouth, Babson, MIT, and Harvard. At Gunn, Missy was elected the school’s first-ever female Head Prefect, blazing a trail for future student leaders, including current Head Prefect Ashleen Hay ’23. Missy said she became involved with Gunn as an alumna because of the lasting relationships she forged at the school. “I’ve become very good friends and been very tight with my classmates. We’ve been together through weddings and graduations and births of children. It only came later on in life where I really noticed that those relationships were attributed to Gunn and most of that was fostered there.”

A graduate of Trinity College, Missy received her JD from the University of Connecticut School of Law and earned an advanced legal degree from the University of Puerto Rico, where she spent a year studying. She began her career as a clerk for Connecticut Supreme Court Justice Robert Berdon, and was a Clerk of the Court in the Stamford/Norwalk Judicial District before joining the Public Defender’s Office as a Deputy Assistant Public Defender for the State of Connecticut.

Raised in Westport, Connecticut, Missy has lived in Boston for over a decade. She and her children are Ambassadors of the Family Advisory Council for Dana Farber Cancer Institute and organizers of the Pan-Mass Challenge, Relay for Life, and other events for the American Cancer

Society. The Remleys are also founders of the Goodnow Developers support group for families affected by cancer in partnership with the Goodnow Library Foundation and Global Partners LP.

Natalie Holme Elsberg P’25 is a lawyer, former student leader, and anti-apartheid activist from South Africa. In South Africa, she served on the executive board of the Law Students’ Council, was a member of the National Union of South African Students, and an organizer and founding member of Students For Human Rights. As a law student at the University of the Witwatersrand, she was engaged in commenting and drafting portions of the interim democratic Constitution, was an observer at the Convention for a Democratic South Africa (where the interim Constitution was negotiated), and was awarded the Abe Bailey Fellowship for most outstanding leadership. Natalie has a Master of Laws degree (LL.M) and a diploma in international tax policy from Harvard Law School. She worked as a litigator in New York City, at Morgan Lewis and at Kobre & Kim, where she handled complex commercial litigation matters for almost a decade, before taking time off to spend with her young family.

On a pro bono basis, she represented the City of New York as the corporation counsel, successfully winning every trial that went to jury verdict. Natalie also represented indigent young black men from arrest through arraignment and succeeded in having the charges against every defendant dropped in the course of negotiations with prosecutors. As part of her interest in representing women and children, she represented incarcerated women at risk of losing their parental rights due to the Adoption and Safe Families Act (AFSA).

Since leaving the formal practice of law, Natalie has volunteered for a number of organizations, including one that supplies South African schoolgirls with low-cost silicone sanitary supplies, to eliminate school absenteeism due to menstruation. Natalie has also volunteered for the Bernie Sanders presidential campaigns and the Zephyr Teachout, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Jamaal Bowman congressional campaigns. Most recently, Natalie volunteered for Justice Democrats, assisting with candidate recruiting and vetting as well as distributed organizing on current congressional campaigns for candidates who do not accept corporate donations. Natalie and her husband, David, reside in New York City. They have three children, Benjamin ’26, and Laura and Adrienne, who both attend the Nightingale-Bamford School.

Bonnie Pennell ’86 is the co-owner of DESIRON, a company that specializes in handcrafted designer furniture, created in collaboration with leading designers and artisan manufacturers. In addition to this, she brings to the Board her extensive experience working with teens, both as a mother of four, and as a unit leader for 11 years at Camp Mataponi, an all-girls sleepaway camp in Naples, Maine, where she was responsible for overseeing counselors and middle school-aged campers. She is a graduate of Skidmore College.

Bonnie and her husband, Keith Pennell, who is Managing Partner at DFW Capital Partners, split their time between Park City, Utah, and New York City. Their children, Caroline (26), Bailey (25), Lucy (23), and Davis (20), are all involved in the arts and education, and live in Los Angeles, Denver, and Savannah.

This fall, Bonnie said: “I am grateful that this school became such an integral part of my life. I am eager to work with the Students & Faculty Committee to collaborate with, and help support, the development of activities and programs that embody Frederick Gunn’s vision as a ‘student-centered educational pioneer.’ I am excited to, once again, be a part of this vibrant living and learning community that strives to bring out the greatest potential of its students — particularly at a pivotal time in their lives when self-discovery, physical, emotional, mental, and social changes abound. I am honored to be on a board that so strongly supports its students and faculty, and I’m looking forward to being an active participant as The Frederick Gunn School continues its pursuit of being among the strongest scholastic and athletic preparatory schools in the nation while maintaining the highest levels of inclusivity, fairness, and opportunity.”

Fond farewells

The Board of Trustees has expressed its admiration and gratitude on behalf of the entire Frederick Gunn School family to these three Trustees, who retired from the Board in 2022.

Len Novick P’18 ’21 served on the Board of Trustees for five years and as a member of the Students & Faculty, Finance, and Long-Term Campus Planning & Stewardship committees. He is the proud parent of Samantha, Joshua ’21, and Zachary ’18. Len has been a Principal at Estreich and Company, Inc., a New York based capital advisory firm, since 2001 and has been an active real estate investor for over a decade. Prior to joining Estreich & Co, Len co-headed the investment sales department at Garrick-Aug Associates in Manhattan. He has also has chaired multiple charity events benefiting The Lustgarten Foundation, raising awareness and critically needed funds for pancreatic cancer research.

Peter Houldin ’92 served on the Board of Trustees for 10 years. He was the first Chair of the Governance Committee and, most recently, led the Long-Term Campus Planning & Stewardship Committee. He has been an invaluable counselor to the Senior Leadership Team, and a dedicated alumni advocate. A resident of Washington, Peter serves as Co-President of Ericson Insurance Advisors. A 25-year veteran of the insurance business, he serves as President of the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of Litchfield County, Connecticut, and on the Board of Directors of the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of Connecticut. He has been a regular contributor to WORTH magazine.

Susan Frauenhofer ’88 was appointed to the Board of Trustees in April 2019 and served as Co-Chair of the Audit & Risk Committee. An attorney and compliance professional, Susan currently serves as Compliance Principal at NextEra Energy, Inc. She previously served as Legal Project Manager at Ropes & Gray LLP, as Vice President, Compliance, at Fidelity Investments, and as Executive Director, Compliance, at JPMorgan Chase. Prior to that, she was Vice President, Investment Management Compliance at Goldman Sachs, where she worked for six years.