JIM MOYER
Jim Moyer was born in the small town of Sunbury, Pa. and raised in Harrisburg, PA. After high school he enlisted in the Air Force and spent his tour of duty in Germany where he fell in love with soccer.
On his return to the U.S. he attended college soccer games and games at various German clubs in the area. He made trips to the Philadelphia Civic Center to see telecasts of World Cup matches. When his boys were done playing high school soccer and went onto college, Jim and a few friends started Interboro United Soccer Club.
Out of that grew the South Jersey Amateur Soccer League.
Jim didn’t just start the league, he was extremely active in it’s operation serving as secretary and registrar for many years. He spent many personal days handling the league’s business.
But it wasn’t work for Jim. It was pure pleasure.
In fact Jim didn’t stop until recently when his health started to fail. Soccer was his love and he devoted every spare minute to it.
Jim built a legacy of his own with the leagues he helped create and run. The leagues have given hundreds, perhaps thousands of people the opportunity to nurture their skills and improve as players.
Other than when his kids and grandchildren were born, one of his proudest moments was when he was recognized by his peers and elected to the South Jersey Soccer Hall of Fame.
That was truly a dream come true. No one really knows how much that meant to Jim.
For those who didn’t know him well, Jim was a fighter. Over the past few years he had hearing problems, lung problems, and problems with severe ulcerations on his leg.
Each event required a painful treatment or surgery that didn’t guarantee him a thing.
But he fought back against each despite the risk, including the last time when his lung cancer recently reappeared.
Jim was one of several people involved in the forming of the South Jersey Amateur Soccer League for Men in 1971. The league began with six teams and the next year grew into two divisions of eight.
Jim was an officer in the league throughout his life and eventually became League Trustee and Registrar until his death.
He was the driving force in helping the league grow and become a quality organization. By 1976 it had three divisions of eight teams.
By 1980 a spring league was started in addition to the league’s regular summer schedule. In the 1980’s the league had grown to about 36-38 men’s teams resulting in four divisions.
By 1988, Jim realized the growth of girl’s and women’s soccer and helped for a Women’s League in the SJASL which varied in size from 8 to 12 teams. Jim was the man everyone turned to for his input, wisdom, and compassion in running the league over 20 years.
Jim was the league’s representative to the New Jersey Senior Soccer Association and later the NJSA. He was outspoken and represented the league with a vim and vigor at the State Level.
In 1991, Jim was inducted into the South Jersey Soccer Hall of Fame for his contributions to youth and adult soccer. In 1999 the SJASL honored Jim by renaming its annual Summer Cup Tournament the Jim Moyer Memorial Cup.
