Bowling Night a Strike for Oak Forest Baseball Association

It wasn't stepping into the batter's box that was on the agenda for the on Saturday night—it was stepping up to the lane.

Looking to raise funds to improve fields and add a new scoreboard, and celebrate 60 years of operation, the association took to the lanes at  April 14.

For $30 attendees enjoyed bowling, a pizza buffet and the chance to take home some raffle goodies and silent auction prizes. More than 120 people showed their support at the event, said OFBA Speical Events Coordinator Jim Zubrzycki.

"We're doing a lot of field improvements this year," he said. "Our main fields are at . We're doing a lot of improvements this year, we're putting up a scoreboard this year."

Kicking off the night, and running throughout the event, were the raffles and silent auction. Raffles included split-the-pot and ticketed raffles, in which attendees dropped their tickets into random drawings for their favorite prizes.

The silent auction featured sporting jerseys signed by stars such as Gale Sayers, Payton Manning, Jonathan Toews and many more, along with autographed balls, pucks and bats, too.

"We work with a sports agent, he gets us our things like that," Zubrzycki said. "He gets a profit and gives the rest to the organization."

While the raffles, auctions and bowling lasted for most of the night, Zubrzycki said that all the attendees knew why they were there: to help the kids who participate in the OFBA.

"The goal of the organization is to keep the kids working, get them going in the right direction," he said. "To get them ready for the upper levels, to get them ready for high school. The important thing is that they enjoy baseball and they they learn the game the right way."

More information about the OFBA can be found at the league's website, www.oakforestbaseball.org. 

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