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Plant the Seeds
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When I was hired at the end of November 2008, I told the board that I wanted to see the sport of bowling grow and that I thought I had the ability to facilitate that. As I get settled in and familiarize myself with the logistical part of being the Association Manger, I don't want to lose site of expectations that I have for myself, beyond the day-to-day operations, for the growth of the sport.
For bowling to grow and flourish, we need more participation, bowlers from every age, from five to the 105 with no gaps in between. We need kids in high school to continue bowling through college and into their 20's and 30's. We need newly married folks to join leagues and bring their friends. We need parents with young children to know that bowling is still an option for them. We need retirees to continue bowling as long as their able. We need, we need, we need.
For this to happen, all the cogs have to be in place and functioning, together. From the bowling centers, to the local associations, to the state, to USBC national in Texas. Growth is something we all want to see. There are very few people who don't want to see new faces every year at the start of leagues. New bowlers means new friends, new competition and more fun for all those involved.
The way I see it, the youth are our 1-3 pocket, where our focus and energy should be. Like the song says, "I believe the children are the future, teach them well and let them lead the way." If we can raise up new bowlers from an early age, we ensure the longevity of bowling as an organized sport.
I recently had the opportunity to enroll Oregon in a test program through the USBC that would target high school club sports to get bowling into the high school around the state. I'll continue to update how this program is working, hopefully resulting in more high school participation that may eventually lead to bowling being considered as a varsity sport.
We are very lucky to have caring and dedicated people already involved in the Youth program in Oregon, such as Directors Davis and Padilla, who were growing the Youth program before I ever showed up. I'm looking forward to working with them and the others involved the Youth program around the state to see what we can do as we combine our efforts.
When I was a junior in high school I chose to have bowling be one of the emblems on my class ring. I took a little flack for it from some of my classmates because bowling wasn't as cool as football or some of the other sports, but I'm sure now that their football days are over, but I just keep on rolling. Here's to the future and 2009!
For bowling to grow and flourish, we need more participation, bowlers from every age, from five to the 105 with no gaps in between. We need kids in high school to continue bowling through college and into their 20's and 30's. We need newly married folks to join leagues and bring their friends. We need parents with young children to know that bowling is still an option for them. We need retirees to continue bowling as long as their able. We need, we need, we need.
For this to happen, all the cogs have to be in place and functioning, together. From the bowling centers, to the local associations, to the state, to USBC national in Texas. Growth is something we all want to see. There are very few people who don't want to see new faces every year at the start of leagues. New bowlers means new friends, new competition and more fun for all those involved.
The way I see it, the youth are our 1-3 pocket, where our focus and energy should be. Like the song says, "I believe the children are the future, teach them well and let them lead the way." If we can raise up new bowlers from an early age, we ensure the longevity of bowling as an organized sport.
I recently had the opportunity to enroll Oregon in a test program through the USBC that would target high school club sports to get bowling into the high school around the state. I'll continue to update how this program is working, hopefully resulting in more high school participation that may eventually lead to bowling being considered as a varsity sport.
We are very lucky to have caring and dedicated people already involved in the Youth program in Oregon, such as Directors Davis and Padilla, who were growing the Youth program before I ever showed up. I'm looking forward to working with them and the others involved the Youth program around the state to see what we can do as we combine our efforts.
When I was a junior in high school I chose to have bowling be one of the emblems on my class ring. I took a little flack for it from some of my classmates because bowling wasn't as cool as football or some of the other sports, but I'm sure now that their football days are over, but I just keep on rolling. Here's to the future and 2009!
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