<I>SUBMITTED photo</I><BR>Frances O'Neil, front row left, stands with her team at the Washington state tournament of the Women's International Bowling Congress in the early 1950s. Her teammates are bottom row Betty Worthington and Pearl Gray and back Bette Snyder, Martha Eaton and Marian Marsh.

ILWACO – “The bowling alley opened in 1946 and just about everyone in town took up the sport,” Frances O’Neil says of the four-lane alley that was built by Walt and Hazel Klinberg above the swimming pool at the Natatorium in Long Beach. “It was located where the parking lot at Fish Alley is now,” O’Neil says. “I was 20 then and even though there was a duck pin lane south of where Long Beach Tavern is, I’d never bowled before. But once I started I’ve been bowling ever since.”

O’Neil even has the same locker she was assigned more than 60 years ago, as the lockers were moved to the present location near Ilwaco when L.C. Neace and Bob and Mary Beasley opened an eight-lane bowling establishment on the hill overlooking Black Lake. “I was on one of the four original teams and we were charter members of the Women’s International Bowling Congress. I’m one of the few left who have bowled continuously the past 60 years.”

Frances bowls Friday nights in the mixed-doubles league, Tuesday mornings on the Endangered Species team in a mixed league, and she regularly competes in the Monday night Friendly League. “I’m the president of the Friendly League and treasurer of the Tuesday morning league,” she says with pride. “My average is down a bit to 144 from the 150 I averaged last year. I’m having trouble with the 10 pin this year,” she laments.

O’Neil hasn’t experienced much in the way of trouble while bowling the past six decades. Her high series is 575 that she rolled in 2004 and her high game occurred “a ways back” and was a sparkling 248. “I’ve been president of the local ladies association for about 30 years and have kept track of every game over 200 and every series over 500 since 1975 in my red book.” She adds with satisfaction, “I bowl better than I did when I was younger, even though I don’t throw the ball as hard now.”

Frances received a gift of a brand-spanking new 11-pound ball from her friends Ron and Colleen Dietl for her 80th birthday. “I used to use a 14-pound ball, but after all I’m 80 years old and I’m entitled to slow down a little bit,” she explains with a grin. O’Neil has competed in “about two dozen state tournaments and two dozen national tournaments” over her career and she has numerous trophies she has earned from her stellar play.

“I don’t go to the national’s anymore because all the lanes are synthetic instead of wood. I can’t make the adjustments in my head to bowl well on the synthetic lanes,” she said. One memorable national tournament was held in Milwaukee, Wisc. “My friend Cindy Trued (who is still an active bowler) and I rented a car. I liked to gamble so we set off to find the Indian casino. We drove for two hours, followed a fire truck for awhile, and got almost to Canada before we turned around. It turns out the casino was about 10 minutes from our hotel,” she laughs.

“We never did place at the state or national tournaments, but we had a lot of fun. The furthest we ever traveled was to Fort Lauderdale, Fla.” O’Neil and several of her friends used to set their own pins in the early years before automatic pin-spotters. “One of us would be back there setting pins for the other three or four while they bowled and then we would rotate,” she relates.

O’Neil was voted most athletic when she graduated from Ilwaco High School in 1945. “There weren’t a lot of sports for girls back then, but we would play basketball between Ocean Park and Long Beach and have lots of intramural sports. I played baseball and I still like to golf,” she says. Frances was married in 1948 to Wayne O’Neil, who was an avid golfer. “Wayne would golf and I’d bowl. About 37 years ago I took up golf, but compared to bowling I guess I’m a neophyte,” she jokes. “Wayne never bowled because he was always so busy.”

The O’Neils published the Chinook Observer newspaper from 1963 until 1983. “I did just about everything during those years at the paper to help Wayne. I’d proofread, set type, did the book work, and even was the sports writer. The employees were like a family to us,” she says. During the early years of their marriage, Wayne went into the service and then to work for his dad James (Jimmy) O’Neil, who also was the publisher of the Observer from 1937 until 1963.

One memorable evening for Wayne, who was also on the volunteer fire department, was the night the Star Corner burned. “The fire was where the Long Beach Bank of Pacific is now. It was cold and wires were snapping and hitting the ground and sparks were flying. I prayed that everyone would be safe and went home and got hot water ready so Wayne could take a bath when the fire was out,” Frances says.

Another business the O’Neils share is Midway Printery, where Frances, daughter Peggy Mathena and Kevin Dodson are still employed. “Wayne had over 100 local scenes photographed and we made postcards from them beginning in the early 1950s.”

After selling the newspaper the O’Neils traveled a great deal “because we weren’t tied down anymore by getting the paper out every week” Frances explains. She taught Sunday school, was a den mother for the scouts and has been extremely active in the Ocean Beach chapter of the Rebekah Lodge. “I’ve been an officer since about 1946 and I’m still financial officer. I’ve had about 45 years of perfect attendance,” she says of her loyalty.

Wayne helped begin the Jazz Festival and Frances and he were helpful in organizing the Ragtime Rhodie Festival for many years, as well. Frances also faithfully served on the Loyalty Day committee for more than 40 years. She began a youth bowling group that was instrumental in getting many Peninsula young people started in the kegling sport.

These days Frances enjoys the company of her great-grandson Marcus, her grandkids Josh, Heather, Sarah and Carly, and her children Dan O’Neil and Peggy. “Marcus is a year and a half old and lives right next door so I get to watch him grow up,” she said.

Of her bowling career, O’Neil explains, “I like to win and I have many trophies, but over the years by far the best part of bowling is the friendships I have developed, especially with my teammates.” Frances says, “My goal now is to just be here and be able to throw the bowling ball down the lane. I’ve always said that if you can walk you can play golf and bowl. They truly are life-time sports; take it from an 80-year-old lady.”

Sunday afternoon she retrieved her birthday ball from her locker of six decades and proceeded to team with Curtis Anderson to win the Greater Peninsula US Bowling Congress mixed doubles tournament at Hilltop. Frances rolled an astounding 205 game on her way to an exceptional 512 series and like a very fine wine, proved that she just keeps getting better with age.