Meet Paula Moore, Orvis Sandanona’s newest shooting instructor

Meet Paula Moore, Orvis Sandanona’s  newest shooting instructor
Shooting instructor Paula Moore, left,  joined Orvis Sandanona in June, when the Millbrook shooting grounds re-opened amid the coronavirus pandemic. Here she is watching the form of student Felicia Mohr while she practiced her shooting.
Photo by Judith O’Hara Balfe

MILLBROOK — Paula Moore had a satisfying career showing horses, something that she loved to do. But accompanying her husband to a sporting clays shooting program one day eventually changed her life, and her career, which is why she is now the newest shooting instructor at Orvis Sandanona shooting grounds in Millbrook.

Born in Sheffield, Mass., and raised with three brothers, Moore said she has  always loved competing, showing horses and shooting. Once she got into shooting, she trained extensively and she said she learned from some of the top shooting instructors in the United States as well as from experts in Europe.

After learning her craft, she started competing regularly, and for more than 20 years she has been a fierce competitor. As a five-year member of Team USA, she competed five times in international competitions. She was with the team for eight years. Moore’s major accomplishments include being a nine-time National Sporting Clays Association (NSCA) All American; a five-time member of Team USA; a three-time  World Side-By-Side Champion; a six-time New York State Champion; and a three-time Zone 1 Champion.

After years of competing, Moore became a NSCA certified instructor, starting her own business and instructing students of all levels. She did this part time for three years while working as an emergency veterinarian technician. Moore then retired from being a vet tech and went into teaching full time and opening up  Moore’s Broken Clays in nearby Red Hook. 

Her business venture took off, which meant constantly looking for new clients, marketing herself, scheduling appointments, bookkeeping and keeping up with all of the other responsibilities that come with business ownership.

When she learned there was an opening for a shooting instructor at Orvis, however, she thought long and hard about making a change. As much as she loved having her own business, she weighed the pros and cons of doing all of the work to keep the business operating — in addition to shooting — which is where her heart is. When Orvis made her an offer, Moore accepted. Shortly thereafter, the country was hit with COVID-19 and her facility closed, but not before she realized the Orvis job would be a good fit, and that she and her expertise had found a good home.

Female shooting instructors are not all that common, but Moore said that those who know her are not surprised that she gave up horses for shooting, given her competitive nature. Some others are surprised, and  it is not terribly unusual for men to tell her that they’d like her “to work with their wife,” she said.

“Shooting is not gender specific, but we have to work twice as hard as a man,” said Moore. 

Although most events at Orvis have been canceled or postponed during the pandemic, as the state opens up, sporting events are starting to take place again. Orvis held a women’s shooting clinic in June and a youth clinic was scheduled in July. The Orvis website, www.orvis.com, offers more information on upcoming events.

Orvis Sandanona, at 3047 Sharon Road, is a vital part of Millbrook’s culture, bringing thousands to their two-day Orvis Game Fair each year. They offer sporting clays, wing shooting, fly fishing, lessons and workshops as well as offering excellent food, fine clothing and accessories, all nestled in a beautiful area of woods, streams and rolling green hills.

For more information, email  sandonona@orvis.com or call 845-677-9701. Orvis is open seven days a week, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Latest News

Classifieds - February 26, 2026

Classifieds - February 26, 2026

Help Wanted

PART-TIME CARE-GIVER NEEDED: possibly LIVE-IN. Bright private STUDIO on 10 acres. Queen Bed, En-Suite Bathroom, Kitchenette & Garage. SHARON 407-620-7777.

The Salisbury Association’s Land Trust seeks part-time Land Steward: Responsibilities include monitoring easements and preserves, filing monitoring reports, documenting and reporting violations or encroachments, and recruiting and supervising volunteer monitors. The Steward will also execute preserve and trail stewardship according to Management Plans and manage contractor activity. Up to 10 hours per week, compensation commensurate with experience. Further details and requirements are available on request. To apply: Send cover letter, resume, and references to info@salisburyassociation.org. The Salisbury Association is an equal opportunity employer.

Keep ReadingShow less
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.

To save birds, plant for caterpillars

Fireweed attracts the fabulous hummingbird sphinx moth.

Photo provided by Wild Seed Project

You must figure that, as rough as the cold weather has been for us, it’s worse for wildlife. Here, by the banks of the Housatonic, flocks of dark-eyed juncos, song sparrows, tufted titmice and black-capped chickadees have taken up residence in the boxwood — presumably because of its proximity to the breakfast bar. I no longer have a bird feeder after bears destroyed two versions and simply throw chili-flavored birdseed onto the snow twice a day. The tiny creatures from the boxwood are joined by blue jays, cardinals and a solitary flicker.

These birds will soon enough be nesting, and their babies will require a nonstop diet of caterpillars. This source of soft-bodied protein makes up more than 90 percent of native bird chicks’ diets, with each clutch consuming between 6,000 and 9,000 caterpillars before they fledge. That means we need a lot of caterpillars if we want our bird population to survive.

Keep ReadingShow less
Stephanie Haboush Plunkett and the home for American illustration

Stephanie Haboush Plunkett

L. Tomaino
"The field of illustration is very close to my heart"
— Stephanie Plunkett

For more than three decades, Stephanie Haboush Plunkett has worked to elevate illustration as a serious art form. As chief curator and Rockwell Center director at the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, she has helped bring national and international attention to an art form long dismissed as merely commercial.

Her commitment to illustration is deeply personal. Plunkett grew up watching her father, Joseph Haboush, an illustrator and graphic designer, work late into the night in his home studio creating art and hand-lettered logos for package designs, toys and licensed-character products for the Walt Disney Co. and other clients.

Keep ReadingShow less
Free film screening and talk on end-of-life care
‘Come See Me in the Good Light’ is nominated for best documentary at this year’s Academy Awards.
Provided

Craig Davis, co-founder and board chair of East Mountain House, an end-of-life care facility in Lakeville, will sponsor a March 5 screening of the documentary “Come See Me in the Good Light” at The Moviehouse in Millerton, followed by a discussion with attendees.

The film, which is nominated for best documentary at this year’s Academy Awards, follows the poet Andrea Gibson and their partner Megan Falley as they are suddenly and unimaginably forced to navigate a terminal illness. The free screening invites audiences to gather not just for a film but for reflection on mortality, healing, connection and the ways communities support one another through difficult life transitions.

Keep ReadingShow less
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.

google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.