Wilkinson Will Serve Third Term As USBC President

6/2/2017

DeSocio Stays As VP

ARLINGTON, Texas – The United States
Bowling Congress Board of Directors have re- elected Frank Wilkinson of Staten Island, New York, as USBC president and Cathy DeSocio of Wichita, Kansas, as vice president for the 2017-2018 season.

The election of officers for the USBC Board took place following the USBC Convention, held in April in Las Vegas. Because of terms limits, the 2017-2018 season will mark both Wilkinson’s and DeSocio’s final terms as president and vice president, respectively.

Wilkinson, the owner of Rab’s Country Lanes, joined the USBC board as a youth committee representative in 2010 and served two three-year terms before his election to the board by delegates in 2016. He served two years as vice president, from 2013-2015, and has been president since the 2015-2016 season.

“It is a tremendous honor for me to have the support of the board to continue as president and to have Cathy continue as vice president,” Wilkinson said. “We have taken many positive steps in the last few years and that is only through the combined efforts of the board, the USBC staff and the thousands who support us at the state and local levels as we continue to build a future for the sport.”

The 2017-2018 season will be the final terms for Wilkinson as president and DeSocio as vice president because of term limits, as each position is limited to three one-year terms. Wilkinson also is in his final term as a board member, which runs through July 31, 2019.

In addition to serving on the USBC board, Wilkinson has served as a USBC representative on the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America board since 2014. He is a director on the Staten Island USBC board and has been on the National Council of Youth Sports since 2012. He has received many honors, including the Staten Island Chapter of the American Cancer Society Distinguished Community Service Award, the NYS USBC Youth Leaders Bridging the Gap Award and the Staten Island Small Business of the Year presented by the City of New York.

DeSocio is president of JOMA Company, which operates eight centers in Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma, and serves as a trustee on the International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame board. The first woman to serve as president of BPAA, from
2012-2014, she was honored with the BPAA President's Medal in 2015. Other awards include the Great Plains USBC Hall of Fame Pioneer Award for Exceptional Leadership, Continued Support and Distinguished Service to the Sport of Bowling in 2014, the Wichita Business Journal Women in Business Award in 2013 and the Bowlers Journal Proprietor of the Year in 2012.

Go to BOWL.com/About to learn more about the USBC Board of Directors.

Article was posted with permission from Stars & Strikes, America's Bowling Newsmagazine. www.starsandstrikesbowling.com