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Scoring just three points less than the gold-medal winner, Joan Humphrey of Burlington won a silver medal in singles bowling 80-84 age group as she represented North Carolina in the National Senior Games.

Humphrey traveled to San Jose, Calif., in August with her husband and daughter.

Competitive and full of spunk, Humphrey’s eyes light up as she discusses her love for bowling.

Humphrey’s journey began in New Jersey, where she was born 82 years ago.

She fondly recalls days when she and her younger sister began bowling. Games cost three for $1 back then, she said, smiling. She joined a league and has been a part of a sanctioned league ever since.

“It’s the only way your score counts,” Humphrey said.

She even met her husband, John, while bowling in New Jersey. He was a part of a boys league, she a part of a girls league.

Because both leagues were small, they merged to hold their banquets. After one particular banquet, they officially met.

“I had seen him around the bowling house before then,” Humphrey said.

They began dating later that year and now have been married for 52 years. They have four daughters and eight grandchildren.

Humphrey and her husband moved to North Carolina in 1964 so he could pursue freelance opportunities in the textile industry as a fabric designer.

In 1970, her husband became a stay-at-home father when she went to work at Western Electric. She worked in purchasing and did other clerical duties for the company. She retired in 1990.

“Now, I am so busy, I don’t know how I worked,” Humphrey said.
“Most of my early childhood memories revolve around being at the lanes in Burlington,” their youngest daughter, Joanie Tyler, said.

“Every Friday night, until a few years ago, they bowled in the church league, and that meant it was Doritos, Coke and 'Room 222’ (a TV show that aired from 1969 to 1974) night for us four girls at home. We knew that was date night for them, their chance to be together without us kids and have some fun time with their friends.”

Humphrey bowled in the church league every year since moving to North Carolina until 2000, when new lanes were built. She now bowls in various day leagues with friends and, from time to time, her husband.

Humphrey hit a road block last fall when she began experiencing back pain. It got so bad she could not walk.

She had back surgery in February to correct some pinched discs in her lower spine. She had to put her bowling ball on the shelf for a couple of months while her back healed. She doubted she’d be able to bowl again. In May, she was able to resume, though she had to use a lighter ball.

She said she still isn’t very good yet, noting that her average was 163 before her back problems.

“She frequently bowls 200 games and is just a great bowler, not just for her age, but for any bowler,” Tyler said.

She qualified for the National Senior Games through Burlington’s Recreation and Parks Department, which is run separately from league bowling. She earned a bronze medal on the state level this year before heading to San Jose to compete nationally.

Her husband and daughter traveled with her as she competed.

“It was real emotional watching her bowl,” John Humphrey said. “See, the doctor had said she’d be bowling in three months after back surgery, but we weren’t sure of that. They (the competitors) came marching out, just like in the Olympic games. Imagine 400 women marching out. My daughter and I were standing there crying because we weren’t sure if she (Joan) would be able to do this. Then when she bowled — boy, it got really emotional.”

The bright red ribbon looped through the silver medal she holds with pride says, “Long Live the Challenge.”

This motto seems to describe Humphrey’s passion as she continues to participate in this lifelong sport she enjoys.

Linda Vestal is a wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend living in Gibsonville. Contact her with comments or story ideas at lindavestal@triad.rr.com.