At Allencourt Lanes, Betty Wolfreys was quickly becoming one of the premier bowlers of the time, even before the formation of the York Simcoe zone.
Betty was born on March 30,1932, first born to proud parents George and Milly Laforce, in the small town of Arnprior. However, she spent her childhood in Buckingham, Quebec, along with her two brothers, Ken and Irvin and at the age of seventeen moved to Hamilton.
Betty developed tuberculoses and spent some time in the Hamilton Sanitarium. It was here where she met another patient, Ernie Wolfreys, who had the same illness. Love bloomed while they were in there and in 1952 got married. After three years they finally were able to start a life away from the sanitarium.
Family life took over for Betty and it wasn’t long before the Wolfreys clan started to multiply. Between 1955 and 1962 it seemed to be a yearly occurrence. Every time Ernie hung his pants on the bedpost, Betty would present him with a little bundle of joy. When it was all said and done there were six little bundles of joy and in 1962, Joanne, Carol, Steven, Patsy, Janet and Heather along with Mom and Dad, settled down in Richmond Hill.
As an avid bowler, it was only natural for Betty to begin her personal house hunting – bowling house that is, and before long found the perfect spot, Allencourt Lanes. You could say that it was here where all the action was. Bowling was just beginning to grow. With the formation of the Youth Bowling Council in 1963, the Master Bowlers’ Association in 1964 and the York Simcoe Association in 1967, Betty was an ardent supporter of all three groups. It was also here, at Allencourt, where Betty would meet Jack Hill, who would become a major influence in many of Betty’s future decisions.
Saturday mornings in the YBC became a family affair. As a coach with the league, it was only natural that the whole family would be introduced to the sport. When the Master Bowlers’ Association introduced the Teaching division Betty was quick to become a member and in her first year captured her first tournament win, the MBA 10% tournament. This win, enabled her to be part of the Teaching Division Ladies team that advanced to the National Championships in Edmonton. In total Betty enjoyed twenty-one years in the Masters, amassing a lifetime average of 225.
As a competitive bowler, Betty participated in many of the top leagues of the day, including the Tuesday Mixed Majors league at Olympia Edwards as well as the Saturday Ladies City Majors league.
In Open competition, Betty qualified for her first team as a member of the York Simcoe Mixed team in 1972. In total Betty represented York Simcoe twelve times, between 1972 and 1986. On six occasions she qualified on the Ladies team, of which two were as a Singles competitor and six appearances on the Mixed team. In addition, Betty was a member of the 1976 Mixed team that won the Provincial title that represented Ontario at the Canadian Championships in Regina, Saskatchewan. Members of that team included a rookie by the name of Marianne Snow and the veteran, Jim Hoult, both who have become members of our Hall of Fame. Two years later, Betty and Marianne would be part of the Ladies team that won a gold medal at the Ontario Winter Games in Kingston. I’m sure there would have been more victories for Betty but a heart attack in the fall on 1987 put an end to her competitive bowling.
Betty realized the importance of organized bowling. Shortly after the formation of the York Simcoe zone, along with her good friend Jack, became the house representatives, initially for Allencourt, but after the fire, continued at ABC Bowl. Before long Betty became the Corresponding Secretary for the Association, a position she would hold for four years. After a short hiatus, Betty returned to take over the reigns, eventually becoming President. However, that position was short lived, due to her health and was forced to retire from active involvement with the Association.
Betty passed away in June 2007 and while many of us lost a good friend and fellow competitor, it’s comforting to know that her legacy will live on in the hearts and minds of her six children, her ten grandchildren and her nineteen great-grandchildren. Tonight, we will add her name to the list of fellow bowlers in the Hall of Fame, many of whom were teammates and all who were friends.