The Frank Bacon Memorial Strike-a-thon is an annual charity

bowling Bowling is a target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a ball toward pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). The term ''bowling'' usually refers to pin bowling (most commonly ten-pin bowling), though ...

event (since 1984), in

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

, USA, which raises funds for the Western Connecticut Regional

Hospice Hospice care is a type of health care that focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's pain and symptoms and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs at the end of life. Hospice care prioritizes comfort and quality of life by ...

Event

Originally named Strikes for Tykes, the bowling event began in 1984, and was organized by Frank Bacon and Jim Byrnes. It was renamed the Frank Bacon Memorial Strike-a-thon in 1993, and it was in that year that all proceeds of the event began to be donated to the Regional Hospice. The event takes place in both

Danbury, CT Danbury is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States, located approximately northeast of New York City. Danbury's population as of 2022 was 87,642. It is the seventh largest city in Connecticut. Danbury is nicknamed the "Hat City ...

and Brookfield, CT, each spring and brings some of the biggest stars in professional bowling together with local bowlers and bowling enthusiasts. The event begins with a breakfast to honor local youth bowlers as well as local

Hall of Fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or Wiktionary:fame, fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actu ...

inductees, and concludes with a bowling exhibition at Brookfield Lanes. The bowling exhibition includes the professionals, local youth and the top bowlers in the area competing as part of a tournament. All proceeds of the event go to the

. The tournament is named after Frank Bacon, the late proprietor of Brookfield Lanes.

Notable guests of the event

Notable guests of the event have been:

Nelson Burton Jr. Nelson "Bo" Burton Jr. (born June 5, 1942 in St. Louis, Missouri, United States) is a professional ten-pin bowler, PBA Hall of Famer, and former longtime analyst for the ''Professional Bowlers Tour'' on ABC Television. He is the son of Nelson Bur ...

(who is a regular attendee),http://www.newmilfordspectrum.com/news/article/ACRI-Annual-Strike-a-thon-set-for-April-18-436351.php New Milford Spectrum, Annual Strike-a-thon set for April 18, retrieved August 2010.

Norm Duke Norm Duke (born March 25, 1964) is an American professional bowler currently competing on the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour and the PBA50 Tour. He has won 40 titles on the PBA Tour, including seven major championships, and another ...

David Ozio David Ozio (born April 3, 1954) of Beaumont, Texas is a retired right-handed ten-pin bowler and member of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA). He won 11 titles on the PBA Tour, including one major championship, and was the 1991 PBA Player ...

Bryan Goebel Bryan Goebel (born October 15, 1961, in Kansas City, Kansas) is a right-handed professional ten-pin bowler who currently resides in Shawnee, Kansas. He is a member of the Professional Bowlers Association. Having previously bowled on the PBA Tour, ...

Walter Ray Williams, Jr. Walter Ray Williams Jr. (born October 6, 1959) is an American professional bowler and competitive horseshoes pitcher. He currently holds the record for all-time standard PBA Tour career titles (47) and total PBA earnings (over $4.9 million throu ...

, Pete Weber, Dick Weber,

Brian Voss Brian Voss (born August 4, 1958) of Cornelius, North Carolina, is a professional ten-pin bowler and member of the Professional Bowlers Association since 1982. The right-hander owns 25 PBA Tour titles (11th all-time), including one major champion ...

Jason Couch Jason Couch (born November 8, 1969) is a ten-pin bowler on the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour, and a member of the PBA and USBC Halls of Fame. A left-handed cranker, Couch graduated from Clermont High School in Clermont, Florida an ...

Randy Pedersen Randy Pedersen (born May 28, 1962) is an American sportscaster and former professional Bowler (ten-pin), bowler. He is currently a color analyst for Fox Sports (United States), Fox Sports' coverage of the Professional Bowlers Association, PBA Tour ...

Parker Bohn III Parker Morse Bohn III (born July 13, 1963) is a left-handed American professional bowler. He has been a member of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) since 1984, and is a member of the PBA and USBC Halls of Fame. Bohn is one of only eigh ...

Johnny Petraglia John Petraglia Sr. (born March 3, 1947) is an American professional bowler. He is a member of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA), where he won 14 PBA Tour titles. He has also won eight PBA Senior Tour titles. He is a member of both the P ...

, Marshall Holman,

Mike Aulby Mike Aulby (born March 25, 1960, in Indianapolis, Indiana) is a left-handed bowler and former member of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA). He is one of only five PBA bowlers to win both a Rookie and Player of the Year award. ( Tommy Jones ...

, among others.

References

{{reflist Danbury, Connecticut Ten-pin bowling Health-related fundraisers