Born in Abington, Pennsylvania, on April 20,1926, Jim spent his first year in a small farmhouse with no running water. Much to the chagrin of his school coaches, he grew up a much less gifted athlete than his taller older brother, Charlie. He was, however, quite the expert at marbles and shooting a pistol out of his back windows into the woods.
Jim joined the Army Air Corps right out of high school and spent two years preparing to go to World War II by training as a nose gunner in the B 25. The winter after the war ended he was the only soldier in his platoon to be given leave to go home for Christmas. When he got back, everyone else had been shipped out to Japan to allow those soldiers to come home and so he was discharged in July 1946. That’s when he met the love of his life, Alice Gross, who was working as a soda jerk at the Dairy Bar. They were married on September 3, 1949, and honeymooned at Niagara Falls, NY, where Don Rickles was the entertainment director at their resort.
From there, five children ensued: Patricia, Charles, Kenneth, Mary Alice and Jane. Alice and Jim eventually were able to buy a nice split level home in Willow Grove, Pennsylvania for $8,000. They were married for 71 years before her passing in 2020.
Jim worked diligently throughout his life, sometimes at two jobs, to provide for his family and he didn’t retire completely until he was 85 years old.
Jim Myers was honest, loyal, strong and stoic. He was generous to a fault and giving to others less fortunate was his greatest joy. He will be dearly missed by his children and their spouses, his seven grandchildren, and his eleven great grandchildren.
In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in Jim's name to a charity of your choice.
