Retired educator reflects on state honor

SUN CITY — After a nearly 30-year career as a teacher, athletic director, and coach, Jim Meyers received a top honor from the state-wide Illinois Association of Athletic Directors (IADA).

Meyers was one of three members of the IADA Class of 2024 Hall of Fame, along with Terry Dobbs who worked at Palatine and Greg King of Sterling, at the May IADA meeting. Meyers explained that due to his retirement as Johnsburg High School Athletic Director in 2003, he is one of the elder statesman so honored.

“I was nominated by the present Johnsburg High School Principal Kevin Shelton, and filled out an informational and career packet from IADA, including letters from colleagues (former tennis coach Rick Bailey), and that went to a committee,” Meyers, a long-tine Sun City resident, said.

“It was time,” Meyers said of his retirement from Johnsburg High in 2003. “It was a good move, as I had an almost 30-year career in education. I had lots of help from my family, my wife Marilyn and two daughters’ help was huge.”

Meyers worked at Johnsburg High for 25 years, after teaching in Irving Crown (currently Dundee-Crown) for four years. He recalled one fateful day when he was teaching, after graduation from Western Illinois University, when Irving Crown then Principal John Lorraine asked if he would be interested in the athletics director job.

“He said he needed a decision by tomorrow, and the rest is history,” Meyers said.

The Irving Crown role came as the D-C school was being formed, Jacobs was opening and the Fox Valley Conference was relatively new.

At Johnsburg, Meyers coached in his hometown school, (he is an alum of McHenry. He coached football for 18 years, softball for 15 years and baseball for seven years. The Skyhawks won one regional baseball title and seven conference softball crowns.

Meyers was an IADA member from 1975 to 2003. His previous honors included the National Council of Secondary Schools Athletic Director of the Year in 1994. Three years later, he received the inaugural IHSA Sportsmanship Recognition Award.

He served the IADA in a variety of ways. He was on the conference registration committees, a district representative and led conferences. Issues he worked on included setting up of a four-class system in most sports.

Officiating was another aspect of Meyers’ sports life. He enjoyed officiating junior high, then high school football and softball, including state finals. He is a Hall of Fame member of the officials Big K Hall of Fame. He also was part of the Elgin Officials Association.

“The shortage of officials has gotten worse, and they are lots of reasons for it. But I think there has been progress being made,” Meyers said.

Meyers considered many aspects of his athletic administration career as a success. These include relationships formed with student-athletes, the coaches he worked with, school administrators, and most of all, the loving support of his family during the years he played, coached and administered sports.

“I grew up and went to a Catholic school in Johnsburg, where there wasn’t any sports, but we still played football, basketball and baseball,” Meyers said.

He still likes a good fishing trip as has just completed one with long-time friends.

Jim Meyers said his wife, Marilyn, is also interested in sports, especially baseball. The Meyers have enjoyed living in Sun City, where they moved to in 2003.

“Sun City has been special to us. Because of its location, it’s a quick trip to our grandchildren’s games,” Jim Meyers said.

Meyers’ career can be summed up in the testimonial about Meyers’ career came from former teacher and tennis coach Rick Bailey.

“What I quickly found out working with Meyers was his complete dedication to do everything in his power to make every Johnsburg student and student-athlete have the best experience possible. Meyers was always the first one in the building and almost always the last to leave at the end of the day. His door was always open. If you needed anything that would enhance the quality of the athletic team, he would do all he could to make sure you,” Bailey wrote in his letter backing Meyers’ induction.

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