Evelyn Mulry Moore
Achievements
Adaptive Sports Hall of FameEvelyn was injured in a car accident in 1961 while in high school. She went on to graduate in 1965 with a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and later obtained her master’s degree from Nova Southeastern University in West Palm Beach, Florida.
She lived in the Sadorus and Pesotum areas while building a seventeen-year career at the State of Illinois Department of Public Aid as an Intake Caseworker Supervisor.
It was with the University of Illinois Gizz Kids that Evelyn was introduced to the sport of swimming in 1964. As Bob Szyman describes in his nomination:
“Her performances at the 8th National Wheelchair Games that year established a pattern of athletic excellence. In her very first year of competition, she placed first in table tennis and bowling and copped a second in swimming.”
From 1964 to 1969, she accumulated 19 first-place finishes and six second-place finishes in national competition, including five first-place finishes at the 1967 NWG and six first-place performances in 1969. She established five national records during those five years.
Mrs. Moore was selected to the U.S. wheelchair athletic team on four occasions. She competed in Tokyo in 1964, England in 1965 and 1967, and Israel in 1968. She captured a number of medals in international competition.
Mrs. Moore temporarily retired from competition and wasted no time reestablishing herself as a top-notch competitor. She celebrated her return to national competition by taking first place in the 25-yard freestyle and second place in the javelin, shot put, and 25-yard backstroke at the 29th National Wheelchair Games in June of 1975.
In 1976, she swam to gold and silver medals at the 30th National Wheelchair Games.