Bowling battle brings Oregon Trail and Mission Trail Father’s Club Chapters together

By Jim Bradford, Chapter Co-Chair at Mission Trail Middle School for Father’s Club

Oregon Trail Middle School is just about eight months into their first year engaging with their students through a Father’s Club Chapter. And as most of us know, it’s tough sledding when you’re building from the ground up.

The buy-in can be hard. The engagement can be difficult. The CONSISTENT engagement can sometimes seem impossible. But it’s a labor of love. When you have the right leadership and there are a few smoldering embers, the right amount of stoking can turn those tiny pieces into a raging fire. At least that’s the dream of every one of us who pour our heart and soul into helping build a Father’s Club at the middle school or high school level.

That’s what co-chairs Mike Smith and Matt Fuller have been trying to do at Oregon Trail, trying to turn those tiny embers into something more.

So, eight months in, Smith had an idea. One of Oregon Trail’s corporate partners is Mission Bowl in Olathe. He thought, why not look to one of their partners to help stoke that Father’s Club fire at OT?

Enter the Clash in the Alley bowling showdown with the Mission Trail Father’s Club.

Mission Trail is hardly a grizzled veteran. They are just an infant in Father’s Club themselves, finishing up year two, but they were happy to join in on the fun for a good cause.

Smith and Fuller reached out to Mission Trail and the Clash in the Alley was a go and the showdown made perfect sense, too. Both middle schools feed into Olathe West High School.

On April 26, the battle took place and man, what a blast. Since both schools are still trying to get their feet wet in the Father’s Club world, the decision was made to make it a Father’s Club themed friends and family showdown.

There were plenty of dads from both schools as well as families, friends and a whole heck of a lot of fun. There were moms, dads, sisters and brothers and even three generations competing for the Mission Trail team.

The champion (top team) was crowned. The traveling trophy will rest at Mission Trail until next year thanks to the multi-generational Anderson family team, but that was just a footnote in the two hours of family fun. Mission Trail Dad Mark Super came within a whisker of a perfect game, ending with an impressive 278, earning him the best bowler trophy. Oregon Trail seventh grader Teagan Smith earned the worst bowler award reluctantly, but enthusiastically, with a huge smile on her face.

There were great conversations and plenty of cheers — mostly for Super and his run at a 300 – but, honestly, the smiles plastered on everyone’s face was the story of the day.

One thing is for certain, that breath of fresh air the Clash in the Alley provided might have stoked the embers just enough to get that proverbial Father’s Club fire burning in western Olathe.

It’s not just about what your Father’s Club chapter is doing. It’s about how we can help each other build something special. And fun events like this are the building blocks for making that happen!