Bocce Ball lights up Woolmarket Community Center

WOOLMARKET, Miss. (WLOX) - Now’s your chance to learn to play the classic Italian game of Bocce Ball.

There are two covered bocce courts at the Woolmarket Community Center, and on Monday, they’ll be lit up after a brief ceremony.

The new lighting, along with covering added several years ago by the Harrison County Board of Supervisors, will allow for all-weather play, day and night.

“Bocce is synonymous with Italian-Americans. It came over with immigrants in the late 1800′s to early 1900′s,” said David Biagini with the Mississippi Society of Italian-Americans Foundation. “They brought the game with them. A lot of us grew up watching our grandparents and parents play on backyard bocce courts.”

The goal is roll the bocce balls close to the pallino ball.

“Our goal with MSOFIA is to bring Italian culture to the Coast. With bocce, we want to introduce it to the county and start a Coast-wide league,” Biagini added.

That Anderson says he approached Supervisor Connie Rockco with the idea of building bocce ball courts, and she went with it.

“Bocce is a good sport for seniors and others because it’s socially active, it’s outdoors and people will love it,” Anderson said.

They’ve got the courts, the clay and the lights, now they want to build a league.

“Once we have the launch of the lights, we’ll ask people to go to our Facebook Page to register,” Biagini said.

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