Friday, January 17, 2025
Each year, Maple Family Centers, of Rockville Centre, replaces all the pins at its five bowling centers with new ones. This year, the company found a creative way to involve the community in its annual upcycling project.
Starting Thanksgiving week, the company hosted its first “Holiday Pin Decorating Contest.” Staff at the company’s five bowling centers handed out thousands of free pins to bowlers and community groups, encouraging them to decorate the pins and enter the contest. Participants uploaded photos of their decorated pins by New Year’s Eve to enter.
“We were amazed by the community’s response,” Teresa McCarthy, director of community outreach for Maple Family Centers, said. “Libraries, schools and numerous Girl Scout troops requested pins so they could decorate them as a craft project. We dropped off a bunch for the Long Beach Public Library’s kids’ programs, and then they requested more for the adults.”
Many participants used acrylic paint for their designs, while others opted for collage or décollage. About 75 percent of entries had holiday themes, such as snowmen, nutcrackers or Christmas trees.
“One of our bowlers, who is a genuine artist, created a ‘storm’ theme that featured the logo of Storm, which is one of the largest bowling ball manufacturers,” LaSpina said. “He gave it to us to present to the owner of Storm as a holiday gift.”
Two winners — one adult and one under 18 — were selected from each bowling center. Winners received a Family Fun Pack, which includes two games of bowling and shoe rentals for up to eight people.
“We received a lot of amazing entries, which made it very difficult to select the winners,” McCarthy said. All participants received a coupon for a free game of bowling.
Several schools on Long Island used the pins for art projects. The Long Beach Special Education Program joined Baldwin High School, Charles E. Walters Elementary School in Yaphank, Coram Elementary School, Hempstead High School, Holy Angels Regional School in Patchogue, Lynbrook High School, Marion High School in Lynbrook and Ridge Elementary School.
“We were thrilled that so many bowlers, as well as schools and community groups, wanted to join in the fun and create decorative bowling pins,” McCarthy said. “Since we regularly upcycle pins, we plan to continue this project in the future.”
For more information about Maple Family Centers, visit MapleLanes.com.
