A Celebration of Roly's Life Schedule

Roland H. West.  75, Candlepin Bowling Hall of Famer 

Roland (Roly) H. West, of Yarmouth Port and formerly of Medfield and Needham, passed away suddenly on Tuesday August 25, 2020. He turned 75 years old a week earlier. He is survived by his wife of 44 years, Kirsten Pedersen West, from the island of Fyn Denmark. He was the devoted father to their three children: Sven West of Roswell, Georgia, Petra West Lunden of New York City, and Christian West of Denver, Colorado. He is also survived by his daughter-in-law Line Knudsen West, son-in-law Theis Lunden, and his two beloved grandchildren Ava West and Anton West of Roswell, Georgia. He is also survived by his brothers, Peter West of Florida, and John West of Oklahoma. 

Roly was born in 1945 to the late Ambrose and Edith West. He was a graduate of Needham High School Class of 1963, Burdett College, and he served in the Army National Guard. 

Roly grew up in Needham, where he first found his love of friendship, and sports. Competitive from a young age, he spent many hours at the local candlepin bowling alley perfecting his game. At only 16 years old, he became the youngest bowler ever to be featured on the Channel 5 Bowling Hour, and went on to set records and win many competitions. It wasn't always about winning though, true to his generous nature, he used his prize money to send his widowed mother on a cruise. Later in life, all of his bowling accolades would lead to his induction into the International Candlepin Bowling Association (ICBA) Hall of Fame.

After retiring from bowling at 22 years old, and graduating from Burdett College, he started his life-long career in the food brokerage business.  He earned a reputation as an honest, successful sales and marketing executive admired by all who were lucky enough to cross his path. Roly’s gregarious personality and positive outlook on life carried him to the Presidency of Frozen Food Association New England in the 1990s. For Roly, business was about building lasting relationships and friendships throughout his career. He is considered a legend in the food brokerage business especially in the Ice Cream community. 

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Roly was also an enthusiastic and passionate golfer. He was a long time member at Brae Burn Country Club, and more recently The Ridge Club. He was a Twi-League Captain, and a Governor of the New England Senior Golf Association. He forged many friendships and memories on the golf course, a place he truly loved where he brought joy with his unforgettable sense of humor. But his greatest love was his wife, Kirsten, who he met while traveling in Denmark when he crashed a party in her city in 1974.   

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He will be sorely missed by great golf friends, business friends, childhood friends, and his family.