Poster entries for 2004

President Report Syleta Halbert As always, I would like to give you a brief report on the National Women Bowling Writers activities, which were held this year in Wichita, Kansas. Texas members, again as always, did us proud. Rosa Haverland, of Austin earned a 2nd place award in the Feature Story category. Donna Lonon continued her winning ways with a 2nd place award in the Column category and, as Editor, earned the top prize in State Publications for Across Texas Lanes. Great job ladies! NWBW President and TWBW Life Member Jan Bacon stepped down this year and Nancy Chapman from Wisconsin was elected president. Some gal named Syleta Halbert was reelected 3rd Vice President and a new but familiar face joined the NWBW board with the election of our own Ellen Goss as a director. Jan won't arrive in Houston until later today but I know NWBW will miss her as much as we did when she stepped down as president of TWBW. She leaves mighty big footprints to fill. TWBW's first order of business for today is the announcement of our poster contest winners: As always, our Poster Judges...Elsie Mitchell, Sharon Creagor and Betty Chandler have done a superb job in judging the entries. Our gratitude is extended to everyone who entered the contest, as well as the winners. The winners are: Association Category; Third Place - Fort Worth WBA, Sandra Jones, President Second Place - Pasadena WBA - Liz Latham, President First Place - Hidalgo County WBA - Kelly Hensley, President Tournament Category; Third Place - Pasadena WBA - Liz Latham, President Second Place - Lubbiock WBA - Deb West, President First Place - San Antonio WBA - Jane Wright, President Our world is now a time of instant coffee, instant food, instant gratification and instant communication. Most of us learn of the world around us in 30-second sound bites on the television or radio and we keep in touch with our friends and family via telephone, fax and e-mail. While there is much to applaud about the technology we have all become so reliant upon, there are also much that we miss about the world of yesteryear. We miss the gracious and news filled letters from friends and family we used to send and receive...We miss sitting around the kitchen table over coffee and warm baked cinnamon rolls while schmoozing with our friends and, for people of a certain age we miss the imaginative programs from the Golden Age of Radio and the in depth news coverage from trusted commentators like Lowell Thomas and Gabriel Heater. We also miss the terrific news coverage provided by the daily newspapers, before most of them decided they had a political agenda to push. To get a flavor of what radio was like in those days I read an article by Steve Darnell. In it he speaks of interviews obtained by Chuck Schaden for his book, "Speaking of Radio". These interviews "paint a fascinating picture of the birth and growth of America's first real mass medium, before satellite communications and the ascension of shrill, opinionated hosts" Again, to quote the article, former announcer Harry Von Zell said that radio was, "the most intimate and socially personal medium in the world." Actors and actresses on radio programs had many more creative options open to them as well. A short, squatty brunet could be a tall sultry and sexy blonde on the radio or a grown woman like Mercedes McCambridge could play "Tiny Tim" in a Christmas Eve radio broadcast despite being so pregnant that she would give birth to a son four hours later. I can remember rushing in from a spirited game of tag or baseball to listen to "shoot-em-ups" like The Lone Ranger and Red Ryder....mystery programs like The Fat Man or who can ever forget...the Shadow knows. My all time personal favorite though was Inner Sanctum. I would curl up on our sofa, bury myself in a quilt and get the begeebers scared out me every week! Just the sound of the creaking door was enough to send shivers up my spine but, I loved it. We also faithfully listened to the news every night and in addition to the radio coverage we received we read the daily newspapers from cover to cover. Perhaps I was more exposed to newspapers than some because my father was a printer but I honestly cannot remember a time when I was not included in the family newspaper ritual. I know I talked long before I walked so maybe I read sooner too, who knows. Sadly, most of the long time radio programs are gone except for Paul Harvey and "The Rest of the Story". Our Sgt.-At-Arms, Adna Clevenger suggested this theme last year and we quickly realized it would be a perfect fit with what we do as publicity writers. Since few of us are involved in broadcast journalism, we decided to try to represent those concerned with print journalism in our theme. Of course the biggest news in our world of bowling this year is the approval of the United States Bowling Congress. This was a long and difficult process, which was made much easier by the wealth of information made available to us over the last three years. Bowling leaders utilized press releases, magazine articles, seminars and round table discussions to explain the necessity of change and the organizational concepts of the USBC. They told "The Rest of the Story" in a way that made most of us realize that this was the only answer to save the integrity of our sport. Now that unification is to be a reality there is so much more to accomplish. As we head down this bright new road, hand in hand with the men and our youth, bowling writers will have additional responsibilities. We must ensure that all of our bowlers are aware of changes as they occur and do all we can to make the transition period as painless as possible. While the next couple of years will be a time of challenge and change they will also be a time of excitement. When we came in this morning we gave each of you a notepad and pencil. The formation of the USBC will give us many opportunities to showcase our sport at its best and we hope the pads and pencils inspire each of you to write down and tell "The Rest of the Story". To close this morning I would like to thank some of the many women that have made my odyssey with TWBW such a glorious experience. When I first came to this board in 1991 I was in awe of the sheer talent and enthusiasm of its members. The board was smaller then...only four officers and two directors. Jan was our fearless leader, the two Helens, Kurburski and Teller, were our Vice President and Secretary and Gail Cantu was our Sgt-at-Arms. The two new kids on the block were Jeanne Hester and I as the directors & I remember well our first board meeting....she and I sat there with our mouths open as the germs of ideas put forth by one member took root, sprouted and grew to full flower right before our eyes. It was exhilarating. That initial excitement has never waned. Through the changes in personnel and the expansion of the board TWBW has always been fortunate to attract some of the most qualified and dedicated bowling promoters in our state. Our current board is every bit as qualified as the one that impressed me so much in the beginning. I have learned from each of you and for that I am truly grateful. The support of the TWBA Board has also been a constant....we exist solely to promote them but they, in turn, have been unwavering in their support of our efforts. I personally owe them a tremendous debt of gratitude. There is one other person that I must thank for his unqualified support and that is my wonderful husband Jim. All of you involved in the administrative side of bowling know how important our spouses are. They endure our absences, they pick us up when we are down and they celebrate with us when we succeed. Jim is with us this morning and I would like for him to stand. Jaimie, you are truly the wind beneath my wings. The rest of my story this morning has to do with the number 13. While some view it as unlucky, for Jim and I it has always been fortuitous. We married on the 13th of the month and we live at 13 Holly Lane and I have served on the TWBW board for 13 years. So, it seems almost preordained that I step down now and give others the opportunity to write the rest of their stories. With all my heart....thank you Respectfully submitted, Syleta Halbert

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The Rest of The Story By Cheryl Ross Now, the rest of the story... There was a little girl who was born in San Antonio, Texas. She was an only child and her father left when she was only six weeks old. Now you would think that this would leave this child bitter with animosity toward boys. But quite the opposite happened. This lack of male influence made her want to be included…not excluded. Whatever a little boy could do she could do also. Having a very hard youth made her strong and she learned to fend for herself at a very early age. This child grew up a tomboy, very competitive, played baseball and football. When she turned 9 a new man came into her life, a stepfather, very strict, a disciplinarian. Again, you would think this would turn her resentful. But instead it taught her to live by the rules. This competitive spirit started bowling around 15 years of age. She has been a league player for over 50 years. The fact that she likes bowling is no big secret.  Hell, she absolutely loves bowling. She eats, drinks, and sleeps the sport. This little girl loved bowling so much that she resigned her Executive Secretary position in 1966 to pursue a more administrative involvement with the sport. She became a strong leader and mentor. It is no secret that she was elated when the United States Bowling Congress was approved. Only she could tell you when she became the number one proponent of the USBC plan of merger. Maybe it goes way back to playing football with the boys. Maybe it started when she walked across the headquarters in Greendale, Wisconsin to the forbiden area where the Men (ABC) were located. This is where she began working together with the men on projects. It was evident that she was in her element when she served on the joint rules committee with the men. In her own words, her philosophy was, “I have always felt that you can work closely with men if you respect the fact they do business differently ... and they do.” This little girl grew up to see the writing on the wall and through her leadership she rallied the troops and her team was able to sell the idea of USBC. Althoughunpopular at first, it was her vision, her persistence, her insight. This little girl was instrumental is getting the USBC plan of merger approved. She knew that WIBC was losing members at 6% a year and that in order for the women to survive that they must be included, not excluded; the women must work shoulder to shoulder with the men as equal and respected partners. Only then would both organizations survive. This little girl, who had a void of male influences from the very beginning, rose above any acrimony and became an avid supporter of Single Membership, which, when passed, eliminated her own position as the 8th President of WIBC– our own Sylvia Broyles. On May 5, 2004, Sylvia announced the member's approval of the USBC plan of merger. Isn't is ironic that the daughter of a Spanish/Mexican father now has an additional reason to celebrate Cinco De Mayo with this historic victory. Now you know the rest of the story.