The year was 1987. Thom Ross, a long-time YBC bowling coach, was asked if he'd consider coaching a group of enthusiastic Prince George Special Olympics bowling athletes.
"I first said no, I wasn't sure," he recalled. "I was talked into meeting them at a recreation night. I showed up bright and early on a Tuesday night.
"Twenty athletes stopped and asked 'are you our new coach?' I was sold. They were so enthusiastic, what a nice welcome. I felt there was something missing in my life. I convinced [my wife] Jackie this was something we had to do."
There was also someone else who was responsible for Thom to take on the challenge - a teenager by the name of Lara Neukomm.
Thom coached Lara in the YBC program and she also competed in Special Olympics.
"I had to miss one Saturday every month because of work and Lara would show me her scores from the week before," recalled Thom. "When I was asked to participate, I thought, if they're all like Lara, I've got it made. She was an inspiration to a lot of people and I am one of them."
Neukomm died in 1991 when she was 17.
Coaching turned into a family affair for the Ross clan.
Their son Aaron, who was quite young at the time, was all for it. He came to the bowling alley and kept score, back when it required a pencil and a piece of paper. Their daughter volunteered too.
Jackie wound up coaching too, the five and 10-pin bowling teams.
The rest is history.
Twenty-seven years later, the Ross family has seen it all.
Laughs and giggles. Athletes trying their best. Tears and joy of winning. Of defeat.
The friendships. The life-long connections.
"I can't go anywhere without running into somebody with Special Olympics, whether it's a coach or an athlete," said Thom. "I get hugs all the time. The athletes became like my other family, they have given me so much."
In addition to his coaching duties, Thom also served on the executive and became the local co-ordinator (president) of Prince George Special Olympics, a post he's held for just as many years while coaching. For a time he also served as the regional co-ordinator for four years, overseeing an area from 100 Mile House to Fort St. John. But he realized he wasn't as involved with the athletes as he liked to be.
But he's stepping down as president and will stay on as the bowling coach for another year.
Thom tried leaving before (he lasted nine months), but he wasn't ready. He is now. But he knows this is it.
At 65 years-old, he's retired from his job at Canfor Pulp where he spent 37 years. He wants to spend more time with his family.
"It's been 27 wonderful years," said Thom. "It's time for new ideas and younger people to get involved. We have three beautiful grandchildren who play football and baseball and we can't see them all the time. It's time for a new chapter."
In 27 years being involved with Special Olympics, he has seen the entire organization grow under his leadership.
When he started, 25 athletes and between 10 to 15 volunteers comprised Prince George Special Olympics. It's now blossomed to 140 athletes and more than 100 volunteers.
They compete in bowling, swimming, rhythmic gymnastics, cross-country skiing, snow shoeing and soccer.
There are 50 athletes who each compete in five and 10-pin bowling. For some, it's the only sport they participate in.
Ron and Dee Neukomm have been involved since Special Olympics Prince George was founded in 1986.
They've seen the impact Thom and Jackie have had on the organization.
"Thom and Jackie are a team that worked very hard to keep Special Olympics on track," said Ron and Dee. "They're very dedicated to the athletes and they managed to squeeze in time to coach Special Olympics bowling, track and field and power lifting.
"Thom and Jackie will be missed."
The Ross' have created two awards - the Brian Antrobus and Dylan Saar Memorial Awards - which are in memory of two Special Olympic bowlers.
The awards, determined by the coaches, recognize a bowler's sportsmanship and an athlete can only win it once.
It's the highlight every year for the bowlers and it's a very tough decision for the coaches to make.
Jackie, whom he credits for his success, was there by his side the entire time.
"Without Jackie, I'm nothing," he said.
They have enough memories to last a lifetime.
Northern Health donates a charter bus for the athletes during the annual Christmas lights tour during the holiday season. Athletes sing Christmas carols and drink hot chocolate while looking at the lights.
There's the annual Gold Pan bowling tournament in Quesnel every March that five Prince George teams have attended for the last 16 years. The bus is donated too.
"After Christmas they always ask when the Gold Pan tournament is," said Jackie. "The athletes would never go otherwise without the bus and they have a positive sport experience with trophies, a band, a dance and awards."
But one memory that sticks out and says it all about Special Olympics, is one that occurred during the Spruce Capital Track and Field Meet at Masich Place Stadium.
Special Olympic athletes used to compete in a parallel meet with the regular track clubs.
One young man from Williams Lake had braces on his legs and was developmentally disabled.
"You could see he wanted to do something so the coaches, seven of them, decided to have a coach's race with him in the middle," recalled Thom. It was a 50-metre coaches race that ended on the straight-away. The coaches let him cross the finish line first.
"I looked up in the stands and there was not a dry eye anywhere. It made his day. He got a gold medal."
They have seen athletes compete at nationals (the highest level for five-pin bowlers, while 10-pin bowlers can qualify for World's) and the Summer and World Games.
The only Prince George athlete to participate in both the Summer and Winter World Games is Marinka VanHage who competed in snowshoeing in Boise, Idaho (winter) and 10-pin bowling in Shanghai (summer).
"Just to qualify for nationals and world's is huge," said Thom. "I never put emphasis on medal count. If they tell me they gave me 100 per cent and they're dead last, it doesn't matter. Just to go to world's and have the success they have, is just great."
Prince George hosted the Special Olympics nationals in 2000 as 1,500 athletes competed in the city and the fans were amazed with the athletes' achievements.
As he reflects on his time with the organization, Thom finds it tough to explain what his experience has meant to him.
"I can't describe the feeling, I'm so grateful to have been given the chance to be a part of. It's helped me grow and I needed the support of my family.
"It's the satisfaction of getting athletes coming up to me and say thanks."
"They're [the athletes] are all so grateful and happy," added Jackie. "For new bowlers, they first time they hit a pin, they're jumping. The first time they get a strike, they're really jumping."
But they're ready for a new chapter in their lives.
There is family to visit and grandchildren's football and baseball games to watch.
"I'm leaving the executive in good hands," said Thom, adding the organization is fortunate to have the support of private and public sector funding. "But it's time for new ideas and younger people to get involved. It'll be a challenge to replacing the aging membership. Twelve to 13-year-old [athletes] are the future of Special Olympics."
Thom and Jackie are one of the few couples who volunteered for the organization even though their children weren't involved.
"It's just something we love and we've met so many people through Special Olympics that we would have never been privy to."
