Like so many of York Simcoe’s Hall of Fame Builders, Gary Kehoe’s induction is the direct result of the influence from the many individuals he associated with during his time at ABC Bowl.
Gary was born into the bowling family of Leon and Helen Kehoe on May 1, 1968. Leon and Helen met through bowling at the old Richmond Bowl, a small 8-lane centre that was located below the old Richmond Hill Movie Theatre on Yonge St. Older brothers, Mike, Jim, Dave, and younger brother Greg are also part of this bowling family who bowled in the Youth Bowling Council (YBC) at Allencourt Lanes and ABC Bowl. The only sibling not to be a bowler is his older sister Debbie.
It was here at ABC Bowl, home of Hall of Fame Proprietors Frank and Pauline Price, where at the age of six, Gary began his bowling career in the YBC. It became apparent, even at an early age, he would become a force to be reckoned with. In his first year as a Tyke, Gary was part of the Championship team, and for the next 12 years won multiple awards including high average, high single and high triple.
Gary graduated from the YBC at ABC Bowl in 1987, which coincided with the closure of that centre, and he moved to Richmond Hill Pro Bowl where he would use his bowling talents in the Senior division as a Supervisor and Coach. Fresh out of the YBC, Gary also joined the Master Bowlers’ Association of Ontario (MBAO). While Gary’s exposure in the Masters only lasted 10 years, he can take special pride in the fact that, as a Teaching Master, he has two tournament wins under his belt. Back-to-back wins came in 1994 and 1995 at the Brockville Classic tournament earning him his Masters ring and a small diamond to go along with it. However, as the opening credits to the broadcast of Wide World of Sports say, with the thrill of victory comes the agony of defeat. In both years Gary just missed out from making the Teaching Masters National team. In 1994 he finished sixth missing by only fourteen pins and again in 1995 finishing in sixth, missing by only 28 pins.
In the Open, while Gary has never participated as a bowler at the Provincial tournament, he has coached many of York Simcoe’s Hall of Fame members. In 1990 he coached the York Simcoe Men’s team, which included Hall of Famers, Geoff Stevens, Russ Hurcom, Shawn Morris and Mike Rancourt. In 1991 he coached the Ladies team,
which included Hall of Famers, Sandi Horton, Thelma Stevens, Carolyn Fletcher and Pauline McNaught.
As a member of the Tuesday Night Mixed league at Markham Bowl, Gary continued to dominate, consistently averaging over 240. His 435 single, which topped his 403 single as a YBC Senior, his 1011 triple and his 1501 for 5 games at the TSN qualifying round are just a few of what he considers his greatest accomplishments.
While Gary had enjoyed limited success in both the Open and the Masters, he has been a dominant force as a board member with the York Simcoe Association. It all started in 1987, when Gary became a member of the Pro Bowlers Decentralized Association and for four years served as their Tournament Director. When the D.C. folded, he immediately joined York Simcoe and started his incredible success. In only his second year on the board, Gary, as the Treasurer for the Association captured top honours at the Ontario 5 Pin Bowlers’ Association Annual General Meeting, winning the Treasurer of the Year award. He would repeat top honours again, the following year.
In his personal life, Gary married Kim Derkacz on May 27, 2000. Kim, a bowler in her own right who had qualified four times for the York Simcoe Provincial Open teams, was no stranger to Gary, since she was the secretary on the Tuesday Night Mixed league at Markham, where he bowled. After the birth of their first-born Jonas, in 2001, and just days before the arrival of Kayleigh, in 2004, they moved from Markham to Oshawa. Now for some, the very first Family Day in Ontario in 2008, was a good reason to celebrate the new holiday, but for the Kehoe family it was also the day when their third child, Alyssa was born.
In 2004, after an eight-year absence, Gary rejoined the Association along with Kim, and York Simcoe would once again have, not one, but two dedicated volunteers. Gary returned as their Vice- President and eventually took over the Tournament Director position from an ailing Andrew Crump. A terrible car accident put an end to Gary’s bowling career in 2006, but that didn’t stop him from his commitment and dedication to York Simcoe. If anything, it made it stronger. As a result of his hard work and dedication, Gary has been awarded top honours at the O5 Annual General Meeting more than any other board member for York Simcoe. In total he has been awarded Tournament Director of the Year 10 times, from 2006 to 2023 and Treasurer of the Year 6 times, from 1994 to 2023.
While Gary’s volunteer commitments continued to grow, Kim, his wife of 23 years, has been his partner and biggest supporter while he continues to pursue his aspirations. Gary has taken over the Presidency of York Simcoe, the spot vacated by retired York Simcoe and O5 Hall of Fame member Heather Cresswell after 21 years and is the newly elected Treasurer for the Ontario 5 Pin Bowlers’ Association.
York Simcoe and 5 pin bowling is in good hands with the commitment and dedication of Hall of Fame Builder, Gary Kehoe.