Born in Hamilton in 1911, Glad Lenz brought a competitive spirit not only to her personal life, but also to her recreational endeavors as well.

Glad was a Hamilton native, born there in 1911 and grew up on Belmont Avenue. Following her marriage, Glad met Hamilton bowling legend and proprietor, Leon Huedecki, who was a neighbour of Glad’s parents. Leon was the owner of Central Lanes in Hamilton and would eventually become the first president of the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of Ontario and a member of the 5 Pin Bowling Hall of Fame.

Leon invited Glad to join a ladies afternoon league at his centre in the 1940’s and, with her competitive spirit, Glad became an excellent bowler. When Hamilton joined the Ontario Bowlers’ Congress in 1963, Glad was part of the Hamilton executive as she was actually at the second Hamilton association meeting, representing Bol-O-Drome Lanes as a house councilor.

Glad became a supporter of the zone association and became involved with the publicity and promotions committee as well as assuming the role of Chief Councilor at Bol-O-Drome and guiding the new volunteers in their efforts. Moreover as part of her role in the publicity and promotions, Glad organized the first Hamilton association golf tournament in 1964 and continued in that role for ten years.

Glad assumed the role of Vice-President with the Hamilton association in 1973 and she continued to add her expertise in the areas of hospitality and instruction while specifically being involved in the extremely popular annual Bowlers Ball, monthly euchre tournaments, and attendance at the annual convention of the Ontario Bowlers’ Congress.

On the lanes, Glad was equally competitive and very successful at the local, provincial and national level. Glad bowled at the O’Connor Open and also appeared on television, through O’Connor, on several occasions. Glad was a regular on the “all events” circuit and bowled in the singles and doubles competition at Waterloo, Oshawa, Peterborough and Aprile Lanes in Scarborough. In Hamilton, Glad partnered with Hall of Famer Lloyd Ormerod to win the city championships in the late fifties.

Prior to the Ontario Open being taken over by the bowlers in 1965, Glad was a member of the Hamilton ladies that won the Canadian championships in 1963. Overall, Glad would qualify for the Open on six occasions prior to her retirement in 1976.

Off the lanes, Glad was a gifted athlete and, along with her husband, Irv, and their son, Dale, enjoyed a family membership at the Glendale Golf and Country Club. On many occasions, Glad won the “B” Flight championship at the Glendale Club and each year, won the ladies section of the annual golf tournament at the annual bowlers convention.

Without question, this diminutive lady played a large role in the growth of the Hamilton bowling scene through her strong volunteer and athletic skills.