Avery Saladino, a junior at Moravian University majoring in photography and digital media,  knew she wanted to make an impact on the Moravian community, but wasn’t sure what that would be.  Admittedly timid and quiet throughout high school in New Jersey, Saladino said she struggled to find what she was truly passionate about in her freshman and sophomore years of college. That changed when she started a bowling club at Moravian in Fall 2022, which allowed her to find a new love for an old passion and connect with a community of people. The club now has 18 members and meets bi-weekly on Sundays from 3:00 – 4:35 p.m. at Steel City and Brews about ten minutes away from campus.  Being a leader wasn’t something that Saladino strived for, she said, but throughout this transition, she has finally found her place at Moravian. 

How long have you been bowling and what influenced you to start bowling? 

I started in my sophomore or junior year of high school. I like bowling. It’s a fun hobby and fun playing with friends while you go bowling. I started it [bowling] on campus, so people have others to go with and have a community for socialization.

Did a family member influence you or have you always loved bowling…? 

Yeah, I’ve always liked the sport. So, during high school, I got more experience and I kind of fell in love with it. I wanted to see if I could start it up at Moravian.

So, you were on a team in high school?

Yeah, we had a junior varsity and varsity team. We kind of switched around to get everyone to play and it was fun. A little competition never hurts anyone! 

Do you find that it releases stress or is it just a fun way to hang out with people?

Oh, yeah! It definitely releases stress. You get the opportunity to throw stuff, in a fun way! 

What was the reason behind starting the club?

I was looking into bowling alleys near here. The main reason was so I had people to go with, so we weren’t going by ourselves… The other reason was to kind of grow it as a team in the future. I noticed that [a group of students from] Lehigh went to the bowling alley …. . It might have just been a group and not an actual club. So, [I thought] maybe other schools around the area have a bowling team that we don’t know about yet. I think it’s a popular club that other schools have, and I thought Moravian would like to have a bowling club, too.

How do you recruit people?

I posted stuff throughout the university [on] the TVs… The first member that reached out was our current president Riley Gallagher, so we started the club together, and then from there, we were having our friends join, her friends join, and mutual friends. We got more members that way.

Did you find the process of creating a new club easy or did you find it challenging?

At first, it was a little difficult to understand USG [United Student Government] standards and what goes on with the club. But at the end, it’s basically just filling out a form telling USG what you want to get out of it. From there, you present it to them, and they approve it…then you are an [official] club. 

So, in this role, specifically, you’re the vice president. How has this new role shaped you into the leader that you are?

I think this role made me more confident in myself. After putting what I wanted out there and seeing the progress I made, it made me more confident and [allowed me] to make myself available to others and [to go out] and meet new people. 

Do you see yourself looking for other leadership roles in the future, has this ignited your passion for that? 

I might join another club or two and try to get on the e-board… Maybe a leadership [endeavor] would be trying to get my photography out on campus and [possibly] try to get a community together so people can come together, take photographs and talk about it.

How do you get commuters involved?

Our president, Riley Gallagher, is actually a commuter. We usually do carpool since buses are kind of expensive and we’re a small club, so it’s easier that way… Carpooling makes it a whole lot easier. There’s a lot of people on the board with cars… I think it’s pretty easy to get from point A to point B with carpooling.

What’s the end goal for this club?

The goal, when I started this club, was to contact other schools and make it an actual sport on campus (maybe sometime next year, once we get everything organized). We could have an actual team going. We could bowl for a club and team.

How do you see this club lasting after you graduate? What’s the legacy that you want to leave behind?

I’m trying to get more members from the freshman year now, so we have people to carry it on when I’m not here anymore.  

Were you nervous when you first started the club or empowered? 

I think I felt more empowered, but I was definitely slightly nervous about the process, but once USG cleared it up, it was more empowerment from there.

Do you think your major correlates to bowling in any way?

I think it [bowling] can bring a creative impact on photography and digital media. I’ve seen different videos on Instagram stories and Tik Tok, of people how they would like to make awesome strikes. I feel like that point of view is really cool. 

Is there anything else you would like to add? 

If anyone is interested, the Instagram is @moravian_bowling_club. You can DM us on there and we can send you the GroupMe link if you want to join and come bowl with us weekly! 

Note: This interview was edited for clarity.