For the second year in a row, children with disabilities will be able to spend a lot of their Saturdays bowling at Sunset Bowling Lanes on 17th Street in Portsmouth as part of the Just 4 Fun Bowling League.

“It’s for any child from the ages of 5 to 18 with a mental or a physical disability,” said Mike Bell of Daymar College.

Bell said the group will bowl every other weekend from the end of September until the middle of February.

“We’re going to be doing registration this Saturday,” Bell said. “They’re going to do registration here at Daymar College (3879 Rhodes Ave., New Boston) from 9 to 11 (a.m.). Or they can actually contact me here at the school at (740) 456-4124 and I can provide them with the registration papers.”

Bell said the registration fee is $10 to purchase shirts for the members of the individual teams. There is also a $35 charge for the bowling, which has to be paid by the first day of the bowling. Bell said Sunset Lanes provides the shoes free. Last year, 51 children participated using some lanes with bumpers and some lanes without bumpers, and the expectation of the organization is that they will exceed that number this year.

“Regardless of if they have bowled before or if they didn’t, it’s just a matter of bringing them out and letting them socialize with the other kids,” Bell said. “It also lets the parents socialize, because it creates that bond. If you’re going through something with your child, I can just about guarantee you somebody else there is going through the same thing. So you have that connection.”

Just 4 Fun Bowling is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization.

“We do have a variety of different events,” Bell said. “People are going to be raising some money for us and we have applied for some grants,” Bell said. “If that goes through we will be reimbursing people because our main objective is to get them to where they can bowl for free. But until that point it’s $35 for the whole season.”

Bell said the bowling league is open to all children with disabilities from Scioto and Greenup counties.

Anyone needing information may call Pam Bell at (740) 821-6144 or Teresa Ketchell at (740) 370-5432.

FRANK LEWIS may be reached at (740) 353-3101, ext. 232, or flewis@heartlandpublications.com.