During his 25 years as a major-league pitcher, Jamie Moyer has left his mark in about every big-league park in the country.
The Phillies marvel, still finding a way to win at age 47, would like to leave an even bigger legacy off the field. He and his wife, Karen, founded the Moyer Foundation in 2000 to run the Camp Erin project, designed to give young people a place to go and be with other youths when they are grieving the death of a family member.
“Our goal is to put one of these camps in every major- league city, and we’re getting close to being able to do so,” Moyer said at Coors Field. “Camp Erin is for children 6 to 17 who are grieving over the loss of a loved one.”
The Denver area will come aboard this fall, with a Camp Erin on Oct. 1-3 at Camp Wondervu about 20 miles northwest of Golden.
“We’re excited to be putting a camp in the Denver area,” Moyer said. “We’ll have 36 camps in 23 states up and running this year.”
The Moyers began Camp Erin in memory of a teenager they met a decade ago in Seattle while Moyer was pitching for the Mariners. Erin Metcalf lost a battle with cancer.
“We became good friends with Erin and her family,” Moyer said. “One of the Moyer Foundation’s goals is to help children in distress, so we asked if we could use her name for our camps.”
Moyer expects the initial Camp Erin in Denver to have about 50 youngsters. The Moyer Foundation funds the initial camp.
“We hope the community wraps its arms around it and realizes the benefits of keeping it going,” Moyer said. “I think there are approximately 16,300 kids who have been affected by a death in their family in the Denver area. There’s a great need for this. A lot of the youngsters who come to our camps don’t realize there are others in their situation. There aren’t a lot of places for them to go for help.”
Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said Moyer’s foundation is a testament to his pitcher’s dedication to helping others.
“He really cares about people,” Manuel said. “He’s been a great major-league pitcher, but he’s also great for society.”
Moyer has garnered support of the Moyer Foundation from other big-league players. He also conducts fundraisers across the country.
“I’ve been fortunate to be a professional athlete. We feel this is a way to lead by example in the community, a way to give something back,” he said.
Irv Moss: 303-954-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com
