Lorain businessman Dominic Rebman, founder of Rebman Recreation bowling alley, died Saturday at age 84.

Rebman was working with his father, owner of Lorain Meat Packing, after returning from World War II when the pair acquired a two-story building at 1040 Broadway to house their first bowling alley, a small eight-lane bowling alley and bar.

Rebman set his sites on expanding, and, in 1955, moved to Rebman’s current location on Oberlin Avenue. There, he built a 24-lane facility. In 1977, he expanded to 48 lanes, making Rebman Recreation the largest bowling facility in Lorain County.

Seeing a need for more recreational bowling, Rebman instituted the city’s first youth bowling leagues on Saturdays. He paid sanction fees for his junior bowlers and also paid entry fees for his junior bowlers who qualified to compete at the state level. He promoted bowling to seniors as well, and he became the first bowling proprietor in Lorain County to install a completely computerized scoring system.

In 1982, he was inducted into the Lorain Bowling Association Hall of Fame. In 1992, his name was added to the Ohio Bowling Hall of Fame. In 1995, he was inducted into the Lorain Sports Hall of Fame.

Dedicated to other sports, he sponsored numerous Lorain city baseball and softball leagues throughout the years. He also was a supporter of Lucy Idol Center for the Handicapped and the Ohio Veterans Home in Sandusky.

Mr. Rebman served as vice-president and director of the Lorain Young American Bowling Alliance for six years, as vice-president of the Greater Lorain Bowling Association, as president of the North Shore Bowling Proprietors Association and was an executive board member of the Bowling Proprietor’s Association of Ontario and a member of the Bowling Proprietors Association of America.

Additionally, he is a Founders Club Member of the National Bowling Hall of Fame and Museum in St. Louis, Mo., and a major organizer of squads for the Slovak Singles Local Annual Tournament andfor 20 years has served as a squad leader and organizer for the famous Peterson Classic Tournament in Chicago.

Rebman, a lifelong Lorain resident and member of the Church of St. Peter, was a 1943 graduate of Lorain’s St. Mary High School. He attended Oberlin Business School and graduated from Dyke and Spencerian Business College in Cleveland in 1947. He served in the U.S. Navy, building drydocks and landing strips in New Guinea in the closing years of World War II.

He is survived by his wife of 61 years, Mary, and two sons, two daughters and other relatives.

Pick up today’s Chronicle in print or read the “E”dition for Rebman’s complete obituary.

Contact Rona Proudfoot at 329-7124 or rproudfoot@chroniclet.com.

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