I have had children in youth leagues now for 3 years. My oldest started in bumpers 3 years ago at Bama Lanes, Prattville. At the time, we had a good group of coaches and the league officials were wonderful. We had a great experience and had a good time. Me and the other parents in the bumper league would sit down in the pits and encourage our kids. Our kids of course were between 3-5 years old so they still need that extra encouragement and a lot of patience.

Now 3 years later my middle child, Austin, is in the bumper league and my older son has moved up. Austin is only 2 but he LIVES to bowl. We asked at the beginning of the year if it would be okay for him to join bumpers though he was a bit too young. At the time, there was only one other child in bumper league at Bama Lanes. We were told it was fine. The bumper league was struggling and close to disappearing. We quickly became friendly with the other parent in the bumper league and also started to realize that the youth coach they had on the bumper league could not handle the responsibility and did not want to be there. She would disappear during leagues, did not work with the children, and Austin did not want to bowl with her after a while of this. We had other children join the league and she did not work with their children either, but did take a fancy to one child because she could carry him around (the child is 6, btw... my oldest is 6 and I certainly do not carry him around and he has been taught to bowl without bumpers as this child's mother wants him to be)

Every Saturday I would go up with Austin since he would not go to the youth coach anymore and would cry if she touched his bowling ball. This young lady has been rude, disrespectful, mouthy, and obnoxious all season. We as the parents have gone to the head coach and the league director and we were told nothing would be done this season. The other parent that has been there from the start asked another youth coach to help coach her son. Once the other mom made the complaint about the girl coach, SHE was not pulled from the bumper league, the coach that came down there at the request of a parent that was actually HELPING the children was pulled and told not to come down there anymore.

Now, I did not plan to go totally public with this before, but now I am. THEY have made this complaint public, so I thought I'd just make it more public and let people know about what is really going on. I filed a complaint with the local USBC and had NOTHING done about how this has been handled. Instead, my complaint ABOUT the head coach was actually forwarded TO him and I was confronted by him during leagues (at which time his DAUGHTER who is the director was announcing that my other son's team WON STATE.. but I didn't get to hear that b/c he was in my ear trying to tell me he wanted to talk about my complaint about him.) The day he confronted me was the FIRST time all season he had come down to the bumpers and worked with any of the children.  I am the one other parent are the only ones that were down in the Pit with our children. My son was being funny about all the strange people down with the bumpers and wouldn't go bowl without me personally handing him is ball.

Fast forward to the next weekend.. I'm not there, but the other bumper mom is.. and it is told to her that there is a new rule (5 weeks before the end of the season) that bumper parents cannot be down there with their TODDLERS. Okay, now... I totally understand and respect not being able to go down there with our older children. I don't go down in the pit with my oldest. I know he is being coached and that he is old enough to do it without me. Austin is almost 3 at this time. This "new rule" was a blatently obvious dig at me for filing a complaint. They had told us that nothing would be donw about the PROBLEM COACH that is causing major problems until next year, but 5 weeks before the end of season the can change a pretty major rule? Now, BUMPERS is not sanctioned by the USBC, so there is nothing stating that the rule applies to bumpers and it has not been a rule for the past 3 years. Not until I file a complaint and he sees that my child doesnt like the coach that he refuses to move. Think he wants me to leave? Hmmm... Well, I know of at least 4 other families with a total of 7 other children about to leave Bama Lanes Prattville because of this drama... and if I can think of that many off of the top of my head, how many more might there be that aren't friends of mine? I don't even know most of the parents... so I imagine this is a problem with others as well.

I have also sent a complaint to the USBC nationals and state. Here is my letter:

"Ms. Swetek,

I am the mother of two children in youth leagues at Bama Lanes in Prattville, Alabama. My husband and I participate in the adult leagues there as well. My husband has been bowling since he was a small child and had been coaching on and off since he was in youth leagues himself. I am new to bowling and have really enjoyed participating in leagues with my children and my husband. We are looking forward to many years of participation in leagues within the USBC.

This year, however, I have been extremely disappointed in some things that have occurred in the youth leagues. My middle son joined the bumper league this year. The coach was a young lady named Kayla. From the start, we had some problems with Kayla. She would not coach the children, and she would disappear during leagues and force us as the parents to take over. When 2 children that are normally at leagues were not there, she loudly announced that she was glad that they were not there. The mother of one of the other children has asked a particular youth coach to help her son as her son is left handed, as is the youth coach. Kayla had a problem with this and would loudly complain that he was doing it wrong (in front of children and parents) and he should not be down there. She would confront the mother of this child and tell her she shouldn't let this boy coach her son. She made comments about the boy when he was not even around. The mother complained to Hank Escaravage and he pulled the boy coach instead of the Kayla and would not allow him to coach this woman's child as she had requested. Several times the mother went back to this coach and asked again for him to work with her son as her son responds well to the boy. Ever time she does, Kayla has a fit and complains to Hank, then the boy is pulled again. My husband came down to help this little boy another day. While my husband was down there, she complained very loudly to the mother who was standing with me that my husband wasn't using the correct weight ball for the child. Her complaint was inappropriate, out of line, and uncalled for. The next time he came to coach the young man, she made several other loud complaints about him in front of the children and parents.

This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the problems that we are having. I went to Melissa and was "politely" told that nothing will be done this season. They did come up with a "solution" for next season that the youth coaches will have to have an adult coach with them as well, but that does nothing for these kids that need some help now and parents that want their kids to move up in the fall.

I am extremely disappointed in how things have been handled and that this situation has been glossed over and ignored. Kayla's attitude and the unwillingness of Hank and Melissa to work with us or solve the problem leaves me wanting to just not all my children to bowl there anymore. We want to come out and enjoy our time at bowling leagues, not be hit in the face by drama every time we walk in the door. That is not fun for any of us anymore when we have to deal with a mouthy, disrespectful youth "coach" that we can't even get the directors or head coach to talk to. I have started to dread going to leagues on Saturdays. I want to have fun, my kids want to have fun, and they also want to learn and become skilled bowlers. I do understand that Melissa and Hank do not have "easy" jobs and do care about the children or they would not be there, but they also have to learn to listen and respond appropriately and swiftly to problem situations.

I first filed a written complaint with Mike Sutton, who forwarded my letter to Hilda Quinones. She has kept me informed as to the status of my complaint and also believes that this issue needs to be addressed. I am very glad you have someone like her in this organization or nothing would be getting done and I would not be returning my children to youth bowling. At some point my complaint was forwarded to Hank himself by someone with my name and information still on the letter. I find that to be very unprofessional. This could cause even more problems (and has) and cause my children to be treated differently, which is not acceptable. If we have complaints we should be able to go to our local USBC and trust that our complaint will remain confidential.

While I'm glad they plan to make some changes next season, those changes are not sufficient to make up for the problems we are having this season and to satisfy me and the other parents that our concerns are taken seriously. If they are going to continue to have youth coaches, there needs at the very least to be a code of conduct and expectations that they must meet to continue to be a part of the program.

This problem has gone from merely a problem with a youth coach to a problem with the whole district ignoring the parents and children's concerns. If this problem had been addressed initially and the problem coach disciplined or removed from the program, this would not have been necessary. Instead it has become the symptom of a bigger issue within the youth league.

Thank you for your time."

BOTTOM LINE, IF YOU LIVE IN THE AREA AND WANT YOUR CHILDREN TO BOWL IN YOUTH LEAGUES, AVOID BAMA LANES LIKE THE PLAGUE. THE OWNERS DID NOT CARE ABOUT OUR COMPLAINTS ENOUGH TO EVEN TALK TO ME OR HAVE A MEETING ABOUT IT AND THE LEAGUE IS RUN BY A CONTROLLING FATHER-DAUGHTER PAIR THAT CARE ABOUT NOTHING BUT THEIR OWN DESIRES. OUR KIDS QUALIFIED FOR STATE PEPSI AND THEY DID NOT EVEN SHOW UP TO SUPPORT OUR KIDS.. AND IT WAS ONLY AN HOUR AWAY FROM OUR BOWLING CENTER.