By By DAN WEISS / Niles Daily Star
NILES -- Three afternoons each week White's Lanes is filled with bowlers ages 55 and older.
The bowling alley hosts three senior leagues each week and each league brings in more than 40 bowlers.
The Tuesday Senior League is the middle ground as far as the senior leagues go. It includes 12 teams with four players on each team. The Monday Senior League has 50 players and the Thursday Senior League includes enough bowlers to fill only eight lanes.
The Monday league started in 1967 and the Tuesday league was started by Parker Taylor about 20 years ago.
The league's only stipulation is each bowler must be 55 or older.
There is no maximum age, thank goodness for Joe Aiello and Doc Frasier. Aiello is the oldest member of the Tuesday league at 95 years old. Frasier is 90 and has been in the league longer than anybody.
Taylor said he never bowled in a competitive league when he was younger and bowling has always been something he does just for fun.
The league chooses teams based on averages, so that teams are kept as even as possible. Each day includes 50-50 raffle drawings and there is a banquet at the end of the season when each team wins some prize money.
Teams are made up of two men and two women. Several are regulars on the Honor Rollers list which is for men who bowl a series of 600 or more and women who bowl a series of 500 or more.
The league will be sending 30 bowlers to the Michigan State Seniors Tournament in May.
Jim Stevenson was an all-event winner at the tournament last year and will be competing in the National Tournament in Reno, Nev., in June. He is only the third all-event winner from Niles.