The Tri-Ship election for the 2025-26 school year runs from March 11 through March 14, with all current sophomores and juniors being able to vote for their candidate of choice in five different positions:
President: James Berman, Walker Chessen
Vice President: Cam Daly, Payton Friedman
Secretary: Carter Vree, Rocky Eisen
Treasurer: Dylan Nemerovski, Zach Goldstine
Junior Class Chair: Chase Marino, Jenner Laden, Colin Hirschle
As New Trier’s longest running club, Tri-Ship raises money throughout the year in various ways, mainly to support the New Trier Scholarship Fund, but other organizations such as the Greater Chicago Food Depository as well. Some of their iconic fundraising events include their annual Christmas tree sale, their steak sandwich sale during football season, and their annual canned food drive.
The New Trier News sat down with the candidates for president and vice president and asked them questions about themselves and their candidacy.
Presidential Candidates
James Berman: Junior
Tell me about yourself:
I’m from Glencoe, Illinois. I’m a brother, a son, a baseball player, and a hardworking student here at New Trier. But most importantly I’m a proud member and junior class chair of Tri-Ship.
Why did you decide to run for president?
I decided to run for president because I really love what we do in the Tri-Ship room. I think what we do is some of the most impactful stuff that any group at this school does, and I want to show my appreciation not only for the club, but for the school by getting involved and putting myself out there.
What are your goals for the club if you were to be elected?
I think we do a lot of really, really impactful things for the New Trier and the community as well. We also have a really strong reputation here. So I would love to uphold those standards, but as well I’d like for us to be more cohesive as a club. I think there’s improvements to be made between us and to make us function better.
What is your favorite part about being in Tri-Ship?
I could say the cold afternoons at the tree lot. I could say the steak sales in the early fall. But the truth is like there’s no better feeling than just hanging out with some of your best friends in a room at school with no pressure on you guys. It’s just a really, really special place.
Why should someone reading this vote for you?
It’s because I genuinely love Tri-Ship. It’s a huge part of who I am. I love being part of the club. I love showing up to the room every day. I love what we do. I love every single one of our events, and I love the community.
How would you describe yourself in one word or phrase?
Enthusiastic.
Walker Chessen: Junior
Tell me about yourself.
I’m a lefty and I’m a four-year varsity athlete for the lacrosse team here at New Trier. I have an older brother at the naval Academy, an older sister at Southern Methodist University, and I love listening and playing music in my free time. I am a pretty average guitarist, but I love it and I would never give it up for the world.
Why did you decide to run for president?
I decided to run for president because a lot of influential people to me were presidents of Tri-Ship like Gus Collins and Duncan White, both of whom were captains for the lacrosse team and people that I really, really look up to. I aspire to be just like them.
What are your goals for the club if you were to be elected?
I think that we do a good job of showing up to a lot of school events, but I think it’s also something we could do more of. I know the Green Team is a big part of the New Trier culture and they kind of lead the chants in the student section and at the games, and three of our members are a part of that Green Team culture, which is kind of a big part of the student section. I think we need more attendance from the club, not just at the football games that we go to because of the steak sales, but also just more events. We could get going to the soccer games and the tennis matches and even the plays and stuff and just show that like Tri-Ship doesn’t only support the scholarships and the events that we do, but we also support more parts of the school than we let on.
What is your favorite part about being in Tri-Ship?
Just being out in the freezing cold with your guys, selling trees and cooking steaks on Friday nights. Seeing all your friends and just being in the room. Some of the people in Tri-Ship I had never seen before when I walked into the room or I’d never thought I’d ever have a conversation with, and then being in the room all year with them, you get really close with those guys and they’re going to be lifelong friends.
Why should someone reading this vote for you?
I would hope to think I’m a hardworking guy; like I said, I’m a four-year varsity athlete and I care a lot about this club. It’s something that I’m going to remember for the rest of my life, and I just think that it takes hard work and dedication to lead this club, and I’m the right guy for the position.
How would you describe yourself in one word or phrase?
Charismatic.
Vice Presidential Candidates
Cam Daly: Junior
Tell me about yourself.
I play football at New Trier. A couple of hobbies of mine include— I love fishing and hiking, I spend a lot of time outdoors, and that’s something that means a lot to me.
Why did you decide to run for president?
I decided to run for vice president because being a part of the service club means a lot to me. Service in general means a lot to me, giving back to the community because I know that I’ve grown up with a lot of things given to me. I think being in a position of power in a service club would mean a lot to me as it would mean I could give back to the community that’s raised me.
What are your goals for the club if you were to be elected?
My goals if I were to be elected would be to want to help modify the vice president position. I want t0 make it part of the vice president’s job to organize more service opportunities. Obviously we do a lot with the tree sale, steak sales and canned food drive but I think there’s a lot more we can do. On a more of a personal note Cradles to Crayons is a great organization that we can help out at. There’s more places where you can help pack food and help kids in the local community that I want to help bring in and make a bigger part of Tri-Ship.
What is your favorite part about being in Tri-Ship?
I’ve kind of said it but I think my favorite part is the service. Whether that’s standing outside during the tree snail in the cold or flipping burgers. But I think when you’re able to go out there with a great group of guys, like the guys in Tri-Ship and actually benefit the community, that’s when you see that experience rub off on you and you see the greatest character change. I think that’s what Tri-Ship’s all about.
Why should someone reading this vote for you?
Someone who’s reading this should vote for me because I think that I have a lot of experience. Obviously I’ve talked about this earlier but service is a big part of who I am, and I think I have a good understanding and a good plan for how to maximize the amount we give back to the community and I think that’s really important. I think that with the amount of service work I do in and out of the country that it would be really beneficial to have me as a vice president in a service club.
How would you describe yourself in one word or phrase?
Accepting.
Payton Friedman: Junior
Tell me about yourself.
I’m 17 years old and have been a part of Tri-Ship for the past three years. I am a varsity athlete, and have played lacrosse for the past three years for New Trier, and I love to collaborate and work together with others.
Why did you decide to run for president?
Throughout my past three years in Tri-Ship, I’ve noticed one thing that has stayed consistent, and that’s the culture. The culture and work that Tri-Ship does really makes the school better. So I decided to run for vice president because I want to give back to this club. This club has given me so much, and I think it’s my duty to give back a small percentage of what it gave me. I want to make sure that everyone who walks into E104 feels proud to be a part of Tri-Ship.
What are your goals for the club if you were to be elected?
I have a lot of goals for Tri-Ship, as it has so much potential even though it’s been around for over 100 years. As vice president, like I said before, I want to make sure that every single person feels confident in this club, every single person is proud and everyone knows how important the service that we do is.
What is your favorite part about being in Tri-Ship?
Like I said before, it’s the friendships and the community in Tri-Ship. It’s just so special, and I am so glad to be sitting around these guys every Green Day.
Why should someone reading this vote for you?
I’m a fun guy with some fun ideas, and I think I can really make an impact for this club. I only want to make this community even stronger than it already is.
How would you describe yourself in one word or phrase?
Kind