Bowlers surprise teammate for 90th

There are many bowlers in Sanders County who have accomplished amazing feats. Some have won state or national championships. Some have had his or her name on a plaque on the wall. But for Rita Harper of Thompson Falls, her amazing feat was when she started bowling.

Harper had never bowled on a league until she moved to Thompson Falls in 2005. That year, she ended up as the Thompson Falls Rookie of the Year. She was 73 years old, the oldest rookie in Thompson Falls bowling history.

Last week marked another milestone for Harper as she celebrated her 90th birthday with her bowling league on Wednesday. Harper was surprised with cupcakes, flowers and a light-up crown when she arrived at bowling last week. Harper didn't have a secret to a long life, but she said she has worked hard all her life, she continues working in her yard and she is careful what she eats.

"I appreciate that I'm able to be healthy and come to bowl and be able to enjoy it," Harper said at her bowling birthday party. Her family held a dinner last week for her birthday, and there was cake and celebration at the Thompson Falls Senior Citizens dinner on Thursday. Rita's daughter Debbie Rolleri, who lives in Thompson Falls, as well as her sons Dennis from California and Jerry from Nevada, attended the bowling celebration. "It's a monumental thing to get to 90," Rolleri said of her mother.

"I admire Rita's strong faith in God and that she calls a spade a spade," Harper's teammate Susan Sweatman said last week.