After the glow of perfect days, palm trees, cool breezes and beaches wears off and the routine of television, breakfast, lunch and bedtime are unbearably BORING… there is bowling. Bowling has no social boundaries, no age requirements and no physical strength. Bowling is an equal playing field. Bowling provides a necessary and much needed refuge for those willing to make the most out of their Golden Years. Bowling provides socialization, conversation and physical exercise in a controlled environment.

Saint Lucie Lanes, formerly Port St. Lucie Lanes, has been a landmark in St. Lucie County for over 33 years. This long standing community center cultivated and maintained a safe, inexpensive, haven for our senior citizens yearning to be “young at heart”. When the glitz of mini-golf, laser tag and over-processed, over-salted food has worn off, bowling in a traditional atmosphere of camaraderie and good company prevails. Saint Lucie Lanes remains an oasis for our senior citizens both young and young at heart.

This is a smoke free cool environment anytime of the year. Saint Lucie Lanes is truly where many of our seniors live. Ask John and Trudy Knudson, married 55 perfect years, they bowl together in 7 leagues between them! John started bowling over 60 years ago where he says he “was pretty good,” but was forced to give up bowling due to rheumatoid arthritis. But when they relocated here in Port Saint Lucie 21 years ago, Trudy decided to take up the game at Saint Lucie Lanes. John would sit with Trudy and put up with the good natured ribbing about his ability to bowl. “They said I was AT&T, all talk and tease. I couldn’t take it and decided to bowl again. I bowled a 246 my first game back and said, ‘hey I can still do this!’” And do it they have, enjoying the exercise and fun, and treasuring the fast friends they’ve made over the last two decades. Trudy had a terrible accident at home in January and has been going through rehabilitation and therapy, but couldn’t wait to get back down to Saint Lucie Lanes to see her friends, bowlers and staff alike. “The doctor said the summer is too early to start, but I’ll be ready for the fall. I can’t wait!” It’s the hope and the camaraderie and companions that push Trudy through painful rehabilitation.

True love can blossom anywhere, and it can be said the shared experience of bowling can be a part of keeping it alive. Ask seniors Marilyn and Ernie Knewitz, bowling together through their 51 years of marriage, and even before that. “I was 15 years old in new York City, and Ernie was a few years older, so there weren’t a lot of things we could do together. There was bowling near by, and it was a place we could be together. There was a time with our children growing up and both of us working that it became hard to find time to do things together, but here we are now bowling together on 4 leagues at Saint Lucie Lanes for over 19 years.”

Lucille Esposito, a manager at Saint Lucie Lanes, has been greeting her customers by name for 19 years. These are her family. Our Ms. Esposito has seen 3 generations of bowlers and their families come and go at Saint Lucie Lanes. Ask Melissa Goodrich and she will tell you stories about how she was raised, and how she raised her children at this family center. Folks here remember the strikes, the perfect scores and the wonderful seniors that chant we will “bowl till we drop.”

“Consider the alternatives – I would rather be vertical and bowling” says Delores Niesolowski. “I want to be here with my friends and good company rather than anywhere else. My children are grown and gone. If it wasn’t for Saint Lucie Lanes I would be sitting in front of the television, flipping through channels, eating alone on a TV table. But now I am part of a community that comes together to talk and joke and eat and just have fun.”

Few places in South Florida have the combination of scope, size and staff to put it all together as your community center for family and fun. We are focused on improving the lives of all residents on the Treasure Coast. We are the proud to serve as the venue for our most seasoned resource, our senior citizens.