Through 28 years of doing this for a living, I've run across countless personalities in the world of sports.

Because everyone is so unique in his or her own way — coaches, athletes, parents and fans alike — it's hard for anyone to stand out in my memory.

Dom Bonefeste stands out.

Maybe it's because of the sport he played and loved so much: bocce.

Maybe it's because of the fact he formed the Butler Bocce Association and was instrumental in having the street he lives on renamed Bocce Drive.

Maybe it's because he and his wife Ann celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary June 12. After all, some marriages don't last 60 days in this day and age.

All of the above are good reasons to have Dom Bonefeste stand out in anybody's memory bank.

The biggest reason is the man's outlook on life.

Bonefeste died last weekend at age 85. He promised to play bocce until the day he died and he pretty much did so.

This man had a zest for life I've rarely seen. He had a smile on his face everyday and he always had an enthusiastic handshake and a pat on the back whenever you saw him.

Dom was proud of his Italian heritage and developed a fondness for bocce during his late teens.

Few people take the game they love and make it thrive in the corner of the earth they call home. He did.

Bonefeste was one of the founders of the Butler Bocce Association and was the driving force behind it. The organization had 25 members 25 years ago. It has 45 members today.

In 2001, Bonefeste and three others reached the national bocce semifinals in Tampa, Fla. Whether in a backyard or on a court, the man could play the game.

Because of the Butler Bocce Association, official courts were built at Memorial Park and Alameda Park in Butler. Members of the association taught the game to residents at the Sunnyview Nursing and Rehabilitation Center and helped out at Special Olympics events that included the sport.

Rolling a little white ball, known as a pallino, then trying to roll a larger ball closer to it than the opponent's sounds like a simple game.

It is.

"It's not a strenuous game,"Bonefeste once said. "It's a game of tact, accuracy and push that you can play forever."

Bonefeste enjoyed life wherever he went. He basked in it on a bocce court.

He had a sign on his garage door that read:"Are you ready for bocce? Yep, it's time."

While the time has come for Bonefeste to leave this world, his spirit lives on through all who knew him.

Butler lost an upbeat person and a true sportsman.

The town gained the opportunity to learn about and how to enjoy the atmosphere of a game that mirrored his life:relaxed, sociable, friendly and fun.

Rename the Alameda bocce court Bonefeste Memorial Court?

I can think of worse ideas.