I'm a winner!!

Huntington to host '09 Elks bowling tourney
Oct 30, 2007 @ 12:23 AM
By DAVID WALSH
The Herald-Dispatch
HUNTINGTON -- The Elks National Bowling Tournament is coming back to Huntington.
Elks Lodge 313 won the bid to host the 2009 tournament. The bid was awarded during the Elks Bowling Committee's annual meeting, Oct. 19-21 in Pontiac, Mich. Huntington won over the lodge from Fairview Heights, Ill.
The 2009 Elks Tournament will begin in March and continue on weekends through early May. There will be no bowling on Easter Weekend.
"It feels good. I'm so grateful," said Amy Neighborgall-Fisher, general manager at Colonial Lanes who was among the representatives from Huntington who took part in bid presentations. "I accomplished something my dad (Rob) did. When the committee members shook hands, I jumped up and down. There were a lot of hugs."
"Be Mine in 2009" is the slogan Neighborgall-Fisher used in the pitch to land the tournament.
Colonial, a 34-lane center, will be the home for singles and doubles. Ceredo Lanes, a 16-lane house, will have the team event.
"I'm tickled to death. I'm sure Roger is, too," said Kathy Workman, proprietor at Ceredo Lanes. Her husband, Roger, who has competed on the PBA Tour and Senior PBA Tour, is currently away from the lanes because he's battling cancer.
Pontiac, Mich., is host for the Elks national tournament in 2008.
This is the third time Huntington was selected to host. The first time was 1995 when 590 five-person teams entered and the second was 2001 with 434 teams. Elks tournament officials hope to attract at least 400 teams to Huntington in 2009. Rob Neighborgall was the proprietor at Colonial on the first two visits by the Elks.
"The Elks put a lot of effort, energy and money into this," said Craig Warner, director of sales for the Cabell Huntington Convention & Visitors Bureau. "The city needs to support this."
Warner, part of the bid team, said the tournament's economic impact could reach $500,000 or more. "It's out-of-town money," he said.
Ron Baumgardner, an Elks 313 member, made one of the speeches on behalf of the lodge.
"This means a lot," he said. "The people like coming back here. They get treated well."
Patrick Blankenship, director of sales and catering at Pullman Plaza Hotel, also made a pitch for Huntington. Pullman Plaza will be the host hotel. There will be a special rate for bowlers and other perks as well. One is shuttle service.
"Our goal is to make people feel comfortable," Blankenship said. "It was a good experience. I felt comfortable and welcomed. We were well received."
Blankenship said lodge officials from Carlinville, Ill., already have hotel reservations for 2009. That lodge traditionally competes on the first weekend.
Warner made the Elks committee aware of the entertainment options available in Huntington and surrounding areas including Pullman Square, which is within walking distance of the lodge and hotel. In addition, there's Tri-State Racetrack and Gaming Center in Nitro. The facility now offers table games. It already has 1800 slots in 90,000 square feet of gaming entertainment.
"It's big money," track general manager Cathy Brackbill said. "We want to get the word out. Our goal is to provide good service."