By: Tylor Sorensen
BELVIDERE, Ill. (WTVO) — Belvidere residents took advantage of visiting Dodge Lanes Bowling Alley one last time at its garage sale Sunday.
Bowling balls, pins, benches and more were up for sale and most people there were eager to take a home a small piece of a memorable place.
“Bowling was our Saturday fun,” Belvidere resident Melissa Severson said. “Mom and Dad got us into bowling [when] I was five years old and went until, I was probably 22 years old.”
Steve Rippon has bowled at Dodge Lanes since the 1980s and said the closure is bittersweet.
“I bowled here two or three times a week for the last 20 plus years,” Rippon said. “I’ve met so many great people and this is going to be really sad and a real shock when this is gone.”
Those at the sale said the alley was about more than just bowling, it was a community.
“It was the whole thing,” Severson said. “I mean, it was a community spot. It was a place where you could just meet up with others.”
Rippon said he felt the same.
“I would just stop in whenever and see who’s hanging around,” Rippon said.
Everyone that was there said they have special memories from Dodge Lanes.
“The most [fun] was just bringing in new people to bowl and teaching them how to bowl,” Rippon said. “That’s what I did pretty much the last couple of years here, and I think that is probably my greatest achievement, just trying to carry on the sport for the next generation.”
Severson reflected on what she said were her favorite memories of the alley.
“Honestly my mom and dad were [in] bowling leagues when I went to prom, and I had my prom pictures taken here in the front foyer for my senior year,” Severson said. “Mom and dad had bowling, and they could not miss bowling.”
