Recipients selected for 2020 USBC National Recognition Awards
February 03, 2020
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ARLINGTON, Texas – The recipients of the 2020 United States Bowling Congress National Recognition Awards have been determined by the USBC Board of Directors.
Dave Bowers of Cayce, South Carolina, was selected to receive the Helen Baker Award for Outstanding Association Service, Teri Haugh of Faribault, Minnesota, is the Joyce Deitch Unity Award recipient, and JoAnn West of New Braunfels, Texas, is the USBC Proprietor of the Year.
Each year at the USBC Convention, outstanding bowling leaders are honored for their contributions to the sport. This year’s recipients, who were selected from submitted applications, will receive their awards in April at the 2020 USBC Convention in Las Vegas.
Bowers has been involved in bowling at the national, state and local for more than 40 years, starting as a league secretary/treasurer in 1973, before becoming a director with the Greater Columbia Bowling Association (GCBA) in 1976.
Currently the second vice president on the South Carolina Association state board, a big part of Bowers’ service to bowling has been at the youth level. He started with the Greater Columbia Junior Bowling Association, and was recruited to be the secretary/treasurer of the state youth association in 1976.
He has been the director of the South Carolina State Youth tournament for more than four decades, in addition to serving on his local association youth committee. In the early 1980s, he served on the national rules, regulations-awards and funding committee as youth national programs united to form the Young American Bowling Alliance (YABA).
He is a member of the Greater Columbia Bowling Association (1989), South Carolina State Bowling Association (1995) and South Carolina State Youth (2003) Halls of Fame.
“To receive this award named after one of the great ambassadors and contributors to bowling and the bowling family is truly exceptional,” Bowers said. “I realize I would not be in this position without the support of my family and my bowling family, who have been so supportive throughout the years.”
Haugh, the Joyce Deitch Unity Award recipient, currently serves on the Minnesota State USBC board as the youth representative, a position she has held since 2015. She has been a coach and promoter of youth bowling in Minnesota and the upper Midwest for more than 30 years.
A USBC Silver coach, she was named to the Bowlers Journal 100 Top Coaches list in 2012 through 2014 before changing her focus from the national to the regional level. She launched the United States Bowling Academy in 2011, an organization of bowling industry professionals who have a common interest of promoting the sport. The USBA is focused on providing coaching, training coaches, and working with centers on programs to increase participation.
Haugh also provides youth scholarship tournaments and Junior Gold qualifiers through the USBA Flight Tournaments, which now cover eight states and has awarded more than $140,000 in scholarships. It was her vision to start the Midwest Collegiate Bowling Experience and Expo in 2013 to showcase youth bowlers and college coaches.
“This award means the world to me,” Haugh said. “It gives me the enormous platform, in which to thank the village of people, helping to bring all that I imagine to fruition!”
West, the USBC Proprietor of the Year, was the general manager of Fiesta Lanes until she retired in late 2019, though she continues to oversee the sales department at the center. The 36-lane center had 18 certified adult leagues with more than 1,000 adult members and two youth leagues with 200-plus bowlers, and West attended every league meeting in addition to actively recruiting new bowlers to join leagues.
She was selected as an Unsung Hero in her local community in 2012 for her work with Strike Force, a Special Olympics bowling team. In 2017, she was presented with the Chair of the Board - Youth Development Award by the New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce. To date, her efforts have resulted in more than $200,000 in scholarships awarded. In 2018, she was named the Texas State USBC Proprietor of the Year.
Fiesta Lanes was host of the doubles/singles portion of the 2016 Texas State USBC Ladies State Tournament and the team event in 2018. She worked with the chamber of commerce and local businesses to provide bowlers with gifts and information on local attractions and restaurants, and also volunteered her time to assist with the tournament.
An avid supporter of fundraising efforts, she organized a Friday night doubles tournament, named in honor of former Women’s International Bowling Congress (WIBC) President Sylvia Broyles, for state tournament bowlers with proceeds benefitting breast cancer awareness. She also sponsored several tournaments benefiting service men and women, including the Wounded Warrior Project and the local VFW.
“I am honored to be recognized as the USBC Proprietor of the Year,” West said. “I am grateful for the recognition I have received for my work in the industry, but I wouldn't be here without the help of my family and all the great employees at Fiesta Lanes.”
The National Recognition Awards will be presented during the 2020 USBC Convention and Annual Meeting, which will be held April 27-30 at The Orleans Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
Visit BOWL.com/ScholarshipsAwards for more information on the National Recognition Awards and to learn about past recipients. Visit BOWL.com/Convention for information on the 2020 USBC Convention.
Dave Bowers of Cayce, South Carolina, was selected to receive the Helen Baker Award for Outstanding Association Service, Teri Haugh of Faribault, Minnesota, is the Joyce Deitch Unity Award recipient, and JoAnn West of New Braunfels, Texas, is the USBC Proprietor of the Year.
Each year at the USBC Convention, outstanding bowling leaders are honored for their contributions to the sport. This year’s recipients, who were selected from submitted applications, will receive their awards in April at the 2020 USBC Convention in Las Vegas.
Bowers has been involved in bowling at the national, state and local for more than 40 years, starting as a league secretary/treasurer in 1973, before becoming a director with the Greater Columbia Bowling Association (GCBA) in 1976.Currently the second vice president on the South Carolina Association state board, a big part of Bowers’ service to bowling has been at the youth level. He started with the Greater Columbia Junior Bowling Association, and was recruited to be the secretary/treasurer of the state youth association in 1976.
He has been the director of the South Carolina State Youth tournament for more than four decades, in addition to serving on his local association youth committee. In the early 1980s, he served on the national rules, regulations-awards and funding committee as youth national programs united to form the Young American Bowling Alliance (YABA).
He is a member of the Greater Columbia Bowling Association (1989), South Carolina State Bowling Association (1995) and South Carolina State Youth (2003) Halls of Fame.
“To receive this award named after one of the great ambassadors and contributors to bowling and the bowling family is truly exceptional,” Bowers said. “I realize I would not be in this position without the support of my family and my bowling family, who have been so supportive throughout the years.”
Haugh, the Joyce Deitch Unity Award recipient, currently serves on the Minnesota State USBC board as the youth representative, a position she has held since 2015. She has been a coach and promoter of youth bowling in Minnesota and the upper Midwest for more than 30 years.A USBC Silver coach, she was named to the Bowlers Journal 100 Top Coaches list in 2012 through 2014 before changing her focus from the national to the regional level. She launched the United States Bowling Academy in 2011, an organization of bowling industry professionals who have a common interest of promoting the sport. The USBA is focused on providing coaching, training coaches, and working with centers on programs to increase participation.
Haugh also provides youth scholarship tournaments and Junior Gold qualifiers through the USBA Flight Tournaments, which now cover eight states and has awarded more than $140,000 in scholarships. It was her vision to start the Midwest Collegiate Bowling Experience and Expo in 2013 to showcase youth bowlers and college coaches.
“This award means the world to me,” Haugh said. “It gives me the enormous platform, in which to thank the village of people, helping to bring all that I imagine to fruition!”
West, the USBC Proprietor of the Year, was the general manager of Fiesta Lanes until she retired in late 2019, though she continues to oversee the sales department at the center. The 36-lane center had 18 certified adult leagues with more than 1,000 adult members and two youth leagues with 200-plus bowlers, and West attended every league meeting in addition to actively recruiting new bowlers to join leagues.She was selected as an Unsung Hero in her local community in 2012 for her work with Strike Force, a Special Olympics bowling team. In 2017, she was presented with the Chair of the Board - Youth Development Award by the New Braunfels Chamber of Commerce. To date, her efforts have resulted in more than $200,000 in scholarships awarded. In 2018, she was named the Texas State USBC Proprietor of the Year.
Fiesta Lanes was host of the doubles/singles portion of the 2016 Texas State USBC Ladies State Tournament and the team event in 2018. She worked with the chamber of commerce and local businesses to provide bowlers with gifts and information on local attractions and restaurants, and also volunteered her time to assist with the tournament.
An avid supporter of fundraising efforts, she organized a Friday night doubles tournament, named in honor of former Women’s International Bowling Congress (WIBC) President Sylvia Broyles, for state tournament bowlers with proceeds benefitting breast cancer awareness. She also sponsored several tournaments benefiting service men and women, including the Wounded Warrior Project and the local VFW.
“I am honored to be recognized as the USBC Proprietor of the Year,” West said. “I am grateful for the recognition I have received for my work in the industry, but I wouldn't be here without the help of my family and all the great employees at Fiesta Lanes.”
The National Recognition Awards will be presented during the 2020 USBC Convention and Annual Meeting, which will be held April 27-30 at The Orleans Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
Visit BOWL.com/ScholarshipsAwards for more information on the National Recognition Awards and to learn about past recipients. Visit BOWL.com/Convention for information on the 2020 USBC Convention.