As friends and family waited for the service to begin, many expressed their admiration for “Hawk” Halas and the amazing connection they shared on the bowling lanes and in life.
Chucky Vozzella, proprietor of Central Park Lanes which became Hawk’s home alleys, said everyone felt his presence when he was in the East Boston bowling establishment.
“Hawk was a sportsman who was always cheering on everyone,” said Vozzella. “He was a true legend, a Hall of Famer, and just a great guy. We would hang out together at Dunkin’ in the morning. We were together quite a bit. His passing is hard to believe. It’s been tough for all of us. We will always remember Hawk fondly.”
Central Park Lanes teammates Joe Stella and Eddie Woodside recalled their first meeting with ‘Hawk’ in the 1980s.
“We recruited ‘Hawk’ for our pro team and my brother [John] set it up, and then we met Hawk on a Friday night in 1988, and he joined our pro team, and the rest is history – we bowled together for the next 30 years,” said Stella.
“Richie was the best, he was awesome,” said Woodside. “He was about six years older than I was and about seven years older than Joey, so Joey and I looked up to him as our mentor. He taught us how to act on the alleys, be a gentleman, be courteous, but to be competitive, that you wanted to win. He had a very unique style where he lined up on the approach and threw a curve. But he was so accurate.”
“Richie was a great teammate, and it was fun going to watch him bowl on television,” said Stella, who is also a Channel 5 alumnus. “Jonathan [Boudreau] told me about a bowling show on YouTube when Hawk threw a triple strike against Charlie Jutras. I was going to talk with him about it the next day, but I never got to tell him.”
Woodside remembered another show in which Hawk Halas rallied from a 60-pin deficit with five boxes left to beat fellow pro Joe Ashline. I think Joe retired right after and moved to Ohio and started bowling ten-pin,” added Woodside with a smile.
Steve Walsh, part of the younger generation of top bowlers at Central Park Lanes, said Hawk Halas inspired all and often offered advice on to how to improve your game.
“Hawk was someone we all looked up to,” said Walsh. “His style was so unique with the way he started his approach way to the right of the lanes and threw a wicked curveball. It was a challenge to compete against him in rolloffs and tournaments because he was so consistent. The game of bowling has lost one of its all-time greats, a goodwill ambassador for the sport and a chronicler of its history in New England.”
Ron Stockton, a fellow professional bowler, offered, “I bowled with Richie for many, many years in travel leagues and tournaments. I was so pleasantly surprised to see his bowling balls and bowling shoes and the wonderful stories about him in the Chelsea Record on display today – they brought back some great remembrances of a great bowler. I miss him very much.”
Jonathan Boudreau, a current bowling star, said he grew up watching “Hawk” Halas competing on TV bowling shows. “I bowled against him a lot and I bowled doubles with him in a tournament. He was a fighter. He never gave up right down to the last box. He had great technique. He was one of the best for many years. Richie was a guy who inspired me and whom I looked up to a lot.”