Wii Bowling league for seniors is right up their alley

By Catherine Kerr
| 9:21 a.m. June 25, 2015

West Orange Times & Observer
Neighborhood

WINTER GARDEN — “Be careful today, girls — I’m in a good mood,” Kathy Atthanasoff said as Marie Staight turned on the TV and started setting up Wii Bowling at the Jessie Brock Community Center. “I’m going to get some good scores.”

“I just want strikes,” Farida Sukhadwala said. “I don’t mind spares — but no splits.”

Elizabeth Rutherford said she was hoping for some hugs, which she always gets from Sukhadwala in celebration of strikes.

Before they start the game, they are sure to shut the door. They tend to get animated, and visitors to the community center have asked staff about the noise more than a few times.

These four women get together every week to play the virtual bowling game that they have come to love. They are all advanced in years, but they don’t let that stop them from filling the room with laughter and a healthy dose of competitive nature.

They are members of the Winter Garden Parks and Recreation Department’s 50+ Wii Bowling League, which started in 2012 with five teams of two players each and is now up to about 15 teams.

Rutherford, 89, has been participating since around the time the program started. She had learned how to play at a neighbor’s house, but then she went to an informational meeting about the department’s league and signed up right away.

“I came, and I really got hooked on it,” Rutherford said. “I think it’s good exercise. … It strengthens your arm.”

Rutherford plays while sitting down, like many of the players in the league. She said that because of the arthritis in her back, sitting down is easier, and she has played better since she started sitting. Her high score is 212.

“You can still bowl, even when you’re 89,” she said.

The teams bowl three games per week, and they are able to choose the day and time that they will play. Two teams can play at a time because the community center has four controllers. If a team has to skip a week during a season, the players are able to play extra games each week until they are caught up.

The cost to play is $1 per week, which department staff originally intended to pool together and use for prize money. But the seniors collectively decided to donate the money to local charities. They have benefitted organizations such as Matthew’s Hope, Down Syndrome Association of Central Florida and Edgewood Children’s Ranch.

There are prizes, though — such as pins and traveling trophies that are given out at an awards luncheon at the end of each season. But these aren’t the main draw.

“We have a few incentives along the way, but mostly they do it for fun,” said Carol Lippold, senior citizen program specialist for the Parks and Recreation Department. “They do it to get out and meet people.”

Many of the seniors who participate used to bowl, and some even competed in leagues. But it gets more difficult with age.

“When we get this old, the bowling ball gets heavier and heavier; you can hurt your shoulders,” Lippold said. “The nice thing (about the Wii) is that you don’t have to lift a heavy ball and you don’t have to have special shoes.”

The league has three seasons per year. Each season starts with an organizational meeting where players choose their teams and sign up for their first game times.

“I always put a new member with someone who’s experienced, so they don’t have to come in and learn everything on their own,” Lippold said.

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