CEJ and Friends Strike Again!

Once again, our Strike for Justice fundraiser proved to be a great success, as friends and supporters of CEJ took part in the revelry of a late-summer night's bowling.

Before we say more, we'd like to take a quick time-out to say thanks to all those who attended and who sponsored teams, as well as the staff at Kenmore Lanes for being great hosts. If you missed it, we apologize if we didn't properly inform you as to how awesome it was going to be! Lucky for you, it is an annual event, so you can come next year!

There is something oddly humbling about wearing bowling shoes. Maybe it's the result of lack of comfort combined with the uniformity of attire which brings about that feeling... or it could just be the fact that most of us are terrible bowlers! Either way, it helps you to not really care about that gutter ball you just threw. At CEJ events, though, we appreciate that, which is why the worst bowler took home an awesome prize - a gift certificate to Rustbelt Books and an autographed high-gloss photo of Bill's running back Fred Jackson.

Of course, there were many things to "compete" for, and the best bowler and best team also took home prizes, as well as best "team morale", which went to the team with the best combination of team name and costume. The Springville All-Star Marching band clearly won the team morale award, showing up in full performance outfit with instruments in tow, playing them as they bowled. No small feat, considering one of those instruments was a giant sousaphone!

During the course of the event, a friend and I got to talking about an interesting subject. It was 10 years ago that Robert Putnam wrote the famous book Bowling Alone about the decline in social capital - the wealth of our connections with each other - in the US. He detailed how we Americans belong to fewer organizations, sign fewer petitions, know our neighbors less, and meet with friends less often than say, our parents and grandparents used to. Instead of bowling in leagues and large groups, we bowl alone. In a city like Buffalo, with a rich bowling and social history, that is pretty obvious.

I guess it would be pretty cheesy to say that Strike for Justice, in combination with all of our work at CEJ, is our way of reversing that trend.

...Either way, I just did. Enjoy!

CEJ would also like to thank all the businesses who donated prizes: El Buen Amigo, Flying Bison, Swan's Martial Arts Academy, Betty's, Chef's, the Lexington Co-op, the Bills, Bisons, and Sabres, and Rustbelt Books. Hopefully we're not forgetting any!