Bluffton Bowling Center honored by BSU

The Bowling Center Inc. of Bluffton, owned by Ball State University graduate Stan Kunkel, is one of five recipients of the 2009 Benny Award from the BSU Alumni Association.
The Benny Award is the top honor for service to the university or the alumni group. Eligible candidates are Ball State alumni, university employees, friends of the university, and corporations or businesses that contribute outstanding service.
The Bowling Center is the only business that will receive the honor. The other recipients are individuals — Kathy Hutson of Daleville, Sarah Maisto of Avon, and Steve Bell and David McIntosh Jr., both of Muncie.
The Bowling Center will receive a Benny Award for service as a business in support of the Adams Wells Alumni Chapter and the Ball State University Alumni Association. Kunkel, owner of The Bowling Center, earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration in 1978. In announcing the award, the BSU Alumni Association said Adams Wells Alumni Chapter has sponsored a family event at The Bowling Center for the past three years and that Kunkel has been a gracious host for the event offering great pricing and outstanding hospitality.
Benny Award recipients will be honored during Ball State’s Homecoming Weekend. Jo Ann Johnston, BSUAA chairperson, will present the awards at a recognition dinner on Friday, October 2, 2009, at the Alumni Center.
Hutson is a registered nurse at St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis. She is receiving her award for her outstanding service on the Alumni Council from 2003 to 2008.
Maisto is the Marketing Communications Manager for Goodwill Industries in Indianapolis. Sge is receiving her award after serving as the Journalism Alumni Society representative on the Alumni Council from 2005 to 2008.
Bell is receiving the Benny Award for his outstanding efforts in support of Ball State University. He is emeriti professor of telecommunications and emeriti endowed chair in the Department of Telecommunications at Ball State University. Bell’s prestigious career includes more than 20 years experience as a correspondent with ABC News and as an anchor with Good Morning America. He came to Ball State University as the Edmund F. and Virginia B. Ball Chair in Telecommunications in 1992. After serving eight years in that capacity, he stayed on as a professor in the telecommunications department. After 15 years with Ball State University, Bell retired in 2007 and received an honorary doctorate from Ball State in 2008.
McIntosh is the Distinguished Professor of Special Education in the Department of Special Education at Ball State. McIntosh is receiving this award as a Ball State employee who has contributed exceptional efforts on behalf of Ball State University and the Alumni Association. He served as the faculty representative to the Teachers College Alumni Association from 1999 to 2008.