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As the month of October starts to race by, our 2008 tournament is beginning to take shape! The final selection of the host hotel and the bowling center are just about decided, the tournament trophies are being selected, and plans for the awards ceremony are underway. Our first No-Tap Tournament fundraiser is scheduled for October 20th at Serra Bowl and we hope for a great turnout! All of us are well into the start of the 2007-08 winter season in our local leagues and hopefully bowling somewhat near our book averages for the first few weeks! I look forward to meeting many of you in Palm Springs this weekend (October 12 – 14) as I bowl in their tournament for the first time! I wish everyone attending the tournament the best of luck!
The rest of this month’s column is dedicated to a very good friend of mine that I met shortly after joining the gay leagues in San Francisco back in 1988. His name was Mark Platis and over the last 19 years, we bowled in many leagues together as both teammates and opponents. We also bowled as teammates in a few SF Golden Gate Classic tournaments. I learned this morning of Mark’s death sometime late last night (Oct 7th) or very early this morning. It has been a very rough day for me and throughout the day I have looked back at the many things that I had gone through with Mark. Some things were not as good as others and there were times that I felt that it was just such a struggle to maintain the friendship with him. Mark bowled in the Tavern Guild Trios 2007 summer season along with several other members who have been part of this league for many years. This league has been around for more than 20 years and some of the original members are still bowling in it. I have been a part of it for about 17 years, if my memory serves me correctly (although as I rapidly approach my 50th birthday, it does not always keep track of things the way it used to). The league currently has only 24 members (8 teams of 3 members), but we continue to bowl together and after so many years, these people are some of my best friends. I may only see them every Monday, but they are an important part of my life. I am currently dealing with some major back problems and the thought of giving up bowling scares me the most. Bowling in the San Francisco leagues has been a part of me for almost 20 years now.
Before this column is too long, my bowling friends are very special to me and I look forward to seeing all of them every week. Losing Mark Platis so suddenly reminded me of just how special each of them are to me and how much fun and laughter they bring to my life every league night! I know that all of us have lost people that we love over the years due to AIDS, heart attacks, accidents or other tragic events. Mark is not the first friend I have lost, and unfortunately, will not be the last.
In honor of Mark and the many other friends I have lost over the years, I am pledging $1/pin for my team event score at the Palm Springs tournament to a local AIDS charity. Let’s all remember the importance of friends and to always look for the good in everyone! A very good friend reminded me not to long ago that you can’t ever take back the things that you have already done or said to someone. Therefore, it is just better to “forgive and forget” because you may not get a second chance.
Thank you everyone for allowing me the space in “The Director’s Corner” to remember my good friend Mark Platis! To all of you who read this, I hope to get the chance to meet you at an upcoming tournament and add your name to my ever-growing list of friends.
Marc Gottschall
Co-Director, 2008 SFGGC
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