DYER | For Shaun Ciesielski, the chance to run a bowling center has always been what he envisioned as his ideal job. Ciesielski never dreamed he'd have the chance to run his favorite locale.

The 28-year-old Munster graduate took over as the general manager of Stardust III last May and has spent the past eight months implementing ideas that he has gathered over a lifetime of being in and around the different Northwest Indiana bowling centers.

"This is something that I've always wanted to do," Ciesielski said. "I have the opportunity to get my dream job. I love it."

Ciesielski began bowling when he was 7 years old and has been working in the industry for the last 11 years. He was a porter at Stardust III when he was in high school and moved on to work at Galka's Pro Shop before taking a job at Brunswick.

"I helped open up the Homewood location and then moved on to Oak Lawn," Ciesielski said. "I started learning the management of a bowling center which led me to the career that I've always wanted."

In the eight short months that he has been in charge, Ciesielski has already left his mark on Stardust III. He has helped expand the tournament selection, adding several showcase tournaments, including the upcoming Valentine's Team Doubles tournament, which runs from Feb. 8-17.

"Coming in here as a bowler, I get the insight of what bowlers want and that is how I try to do things," Ciesielski said. "We're not trying to do everything at once, but we're trying to get Stardust back to where it was in the past five years."

Ciesielski admits that the recent memories local bowlers have of Stardust III might not be the best, but that he is charged with turning around a center that he feels can be amongst the best in the area.

"We want to be recognized as a house that people want to bowl at," Ciesielski said. "A place that is fun to come too, that takes leagues and bowling serious."

The Valentine's tournament is scheduled to take place over two weekends, in part because Ciesielski wants to give people the chance to return to the center, something he hopes people start to do on a regular basis.

"When you have a one day tournament, you don't have that big of a turnout," Ciesielski said. "I've been running tournaments for the last 10 years now and it seems like I've built a following."

Stardust III ran a Thanksgiving tournament with a similar format and drew 233 bowlers. First prize was $1,000 and more than 25 spots were paid out. Ciesielski is hoping for similar numbers next month.

"It's a win-win situation with a bigger prize fund and people can re-bowl if they'd like to," Ciesielski said. "We're hoping to drive entries to get a lot of people in here."