Tears Are Falling: Joliet, Plainfield bowling communities remember Jeff Bailey

Fifteen years ago, John Lizzio began entering Joliet Town and Lanes the same way every time he went there.

“I’d shout, ‘Hi Jeff Bailey!’ as loud as I could,” he said.

Bailey, the manager at Joliet Town and Lanes, would look over to Lizzio, flash a big smile, let out a big laugh and the two would begin talking “for hours.”

Lizzio, the girls bowling coach at Joliet West, recalls this memory fondly, but with evident sadness as well.

“I’m going to miss that a lot,” he said.

Jeff Bailey, a member of the Joliet USBC Bowling Hall of Fame, died May 8 from an illness. He was 56.

The outpouring of support from the local community has been unmissable. It’s reflected the life of a man whose impact was widespread. The devout KISS fan touched the lives of people from Plainfield, Joliet, and even around the country.

King of the Mountain

A graduate of Joliet Central, Bailey went from owning a trucking business to working as a press operator to managing Joliet Town and Lanes for more than 20 years.

He took over as head coach for the Plainfield South boys bowling team in the 2009-2010 season, leading the team to a state championship his sole year.

It wasn’t just local, either. Every summer Bailey also traveled to work the Junior Gold Youth Bowling Tournament.

“He’d go by himself and help kids from around the country within the bowling community for two weeks,” Lizzio said. “He was a really special person.”

After his time at Plainfield South, Bailey took over as the head coach of the girls bowling team at Joliet West in 2013. That was the same time his daughter Taylor joined the team.

“Like any kid with a parent as a coach, you don’t want to listen to them,” Taylor said with a laugh. “I don’t think it was until high school that I took him seriously. All he ever wanted was to help me, even if I couldn’t see it at the time.”

Taylor, Jeff and Joliet West capped off her senior year in 2016 with the first state championship in program history. Jeff later led West to a state runner-up finish in 2023.

Though that was his last year at Joliet West, it wasn’t the end of his coaching tenure.

Rock and Bowl All Nite

Taylor went on to work as an assistant coach for the bowling team at Arkansas State. It was a decision that touched Jeff greatly.

“He was immensely proud,” Taylor said. “I was bowling professionally at the time and was still on tour in the summer. He actually picked up all my stuff and drove it down to Arkansas and moved it into my apartment for me.”

Not long after, Jeff decided to join the college ranks himself.

Jeff left West in 2023 to start the bowling program at Joliet Junior College. His first year, former Lockport bowler Madi Lave won the NJCAA Women’s Bowling Singles National Championship.

“I don’t think he ever envisioned himself being so involved,” Taylor said. “I’m not sure where that came from, but he definitely tried to make the community a better place ... and I think he succeeded.”

A World Without Heroes

On Dec. 3 of this past year, Jeff was hospitalized with chronic pancreatitis. Lizzio spent the first two and a half weeks with Jeff at the hospital and began filling in for him at JJC. Despite the various complications that accrued during this time, Jeff’s focus remained on others.

“We’d talk about all of the kids (at JJC),” Lizzio said. “He wanted them to always enjoy themselves, have fun and love the sport like he loved the sport.”

Jeff’s sister Judy looked after him during his illness with Taylor still living in Arkansas. Taylor made it back to see him when she could and was grateful for that time.

“Growing up, he always told me that if he ever got to the point where he was really sick, like, that he’d never let me see him that way,” Taylor said. “He definitely got over that, and it helped us bond a little more.”

Tragically, his prognosis changed suddenly May 4. That was when doctors found an abscess in Jeff’s stomach. Four days later, he was gone.

“The news was terrible,” Lizzio said. “Not just at Joliet West, but in the whole community, he just touched the hearts of everybody. ... It’s just devastating.”

Forever

The loss has been felt throughout the community.

A year after departing West, the Tigers won their second state championship and finished runner-up this past season. Lave repeated as the national champion in singles this year.

The effect Jeff Bailey had on others can be felt in all of that.

“I never realized how far his impact truly reached,” Taylor said. “I’m so grateful and blessed to have been able to call him my dad.”

“His legacy will never be forgotten,” Lizzio said. “He’ll be remembered by everybody for everything he did, the daughter he has raised, the family man he was.

“No one will forget Jeff Bailey.”