High school senior Calaeb Sapa is an avid bowler.

Nancy Edmonds Hanson

Calaeb Sapa, now a high school senior, was saddened nearly a decade ago when he realized that other youngsters didn’t get to enjoy the bounty of toys that were under his own Christmas tree. He sympathized … and he’s been doing something about it ever since.

On Sunday, Calaeb sponsored his seventh annual “Toys for Joy” bowling tournament at Sunset Lanes in Moorhead. For a donation of two toys plus the registration fee, some three dozen bowlers – both youth and adult – competed in three divisions for cash prizes and scholarships.

Over the past three years, the Moorhead-based tournament has awarded more than $5,000 in scholarships through the US Bowling Congress, as well as cash prizes for adult competitors. This year’s event added about $2,500 to the total.

But the toys for underprivileged children remain at the heart of the teen-ager’s annual undertaking. More than 600 were collected Sunday, reports his mother, Jessica Krump of Grand Forks: “He asks those who enter to bring two toys, but they usually bring lots more.” The toys are divided between the United Way of Grand Forks, his home town, and children in Dilworth, Moorhead, Glyndon and Felton.

Calaeb – an avid bowler and competitor himself – put together his first charity event when he was in fifth grade. “For the first couple years, bowlers just brought toys and had an afternoon of fun,” Jessica says. It evolved into a more traditional tournament as he grew older, but the fun remains a big part. This year’s entrants ranged from 7 to 65 years old.

“This is the most important thing I do all year,” Calaeb says. “It combines my two favorite things, helping others and bowling.” When not working on his own annual event, he often bowls in others. How does he do? “I’ve won some,” he notes, “but not as often as I’d like.

For more information on Calaeb’s “Toys for Joy” tournaments, go to www.toysforjoybowling.com.