“I first found out about Northwood because of Coach Mallaro. He came to watch one of my games and contacted my parents shortly after. He told my parents all about the school, hockey, and community, and it sounded like an excellent fit for me and a place where I could really find that balance between school and hockey. With all the traveling and driving to the rink, academics took somewhat of a back seat. It was important for me to find a place with a great school and a great hockey program so that I could excel in the classroom as well. It checked all the boxes for me compared to other prep schools I looked at.

“I would say that hockey is my favorite part about Northwood so far. I’ve never been able to get on the ice this much—seeing and feeling myself improve week by week has been great. I’m loving the schedule now that we switched to morning practices; having fun with the boys is the best way to start each day. Morning practice wakes me up for the rest of the school day and helps me focus on school, which I love.

“After Northwood, I plan on playing Junior hockey at wherever the best fit for me will be. I would love to see where hockey can take me. Whether that’s the collegiate level or not, I want to take the next step toward achieving my goals.”

As told to Cody Betsch ’26. Photo by Mr. Michael Aldridge.

Welcome to Adam Sherman ’26 , Hunter Bridges ‘26, and Max Stracar’s ‘26 room. All three are seniors here at Northwood, and they have some experience living together. Adam and Hunter are longtime friends who grew up together in Saratoga. They met Max two years ago and previously lived in a billet house with each other. Max is from Syosset, New York.

Having three people in a room can definitely make it hard to keep the room neat. When I took this picture, though, they were packing for the upcoming weekend. It is usually cleaner here, with plenty of space to hang out. The boys bought Christmas lights and a Christmas tree to get into the holiday spirit.

These are their jerseys from the former team that they played on together.  These jerseys bring back many great memories for them from the last two years of playing and living together.

This is Hunter’s side of the room. He bought a carpet because it looks nice and because the floor can get cold in the morning. He added a bean bag so that friends would have a good spot to hang out. All three boys have gaming consoles. They like to play NHL with each other, but also enjoy gaming on their own and with friends from around school and back home.

Despite the messy room, the boys like to keep track of what’s to come for them. Whether that’s upcoming assignments, tests, trips home, meetings, hockey, etc. The board is empty in this picture because the week was over for them, and they wanted to have a clean board for next week.

Welcome to Parker Thompson’s room. This is his third year of boarding at Northwood.  Parker lives in a brand-new single room on Second East. His room was the former laundry room, so everything in his room is new, from the flooring to the walls. He has a nice setup and has added decoration and furniture to make it seem homier.

When it comes to rooms, Parker has been through it all. His first year, he was in Bergamini in a double room. In his second year, he was on 2nd East in a double room again. At the start of the year, his room was still under construction, so he was living in the smallest room on campus on Third East. He just recently made the move to his new permanent room on the second floor of East dorm.

This is Parker’s new room; he tries to keep his room as clean as possible because he likes the room to feel spacious. The color scheme is quite simple, but it all works well together. He keeps extra chairs in his room so that friends can come in and hang out for a while.

This is the flag that represents his hometown, Akwesasne. Being native to the Akwesasne reservation, this flag serves as a constant reminder of his home and his family. The flag keeps him connected to his hometown.

Outside of formal dinners, you almost never see Parker without a hat on. All of those hats he actually made himself, and over the summer, he makes hats for work. He is also working on a hat company for PEAK Pathways, so stay tuned for more on that.

Lastly and maybe most importantly, we have his bed. The spot where he begins and ends every day. As with the rest of the room, Parker tries to keep his bed neat. He likes relaxing here after long days of school and practice.

“I first found out about Northwood because of all the times that I had visited Lake Placid with my dad. I knew I loved the area, and when my dad and I were doing research into schools and everything, we found Northwood. It checked all the boxes for me and felt like a no-brainer.

“I would say that my favorite part of the Northwood experience is the sense of community with not only the sports teams but also all of the students and faculty. I think that Northwood does a great job making you feel at home, and it is definitely a high point of my experience at school.

“My plan for next year is to hopefully go play hockey in a good junior league, but I think that Northwood has prepared me well for the next steps in my life, like applying to colleges and eventually joining the workforce.

“Something that I will never forget and take with me after Northwood is the way that school felt. It feels like a family here, and that makes getting up, school, sports, everything, much easier.

“The advice I would give to the students on campus is to savor every moment while you’re here. Northwood is really a special place, and it goes by really fast. These last years have been highlights in my life, and the thought of it coming to an end is sad. I’ll miss everything about this place.”

As told to Cody Betsch ’26. Photo provided.