Charlie Moyer's Celebration of Life
ALTON - A touching Celebration Of Life was held for Alton's "Can Man" Charley Moyer AKA Joey Moyer Sunday, May 1, 2022, at Elias Kallal and Schaaf Funeral Home in Alton.
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Charley lived in Alton for much of his life and relied on a collection of cans to sustain himself, thus he obtained the nickname "Charley The Can Man." Charley had cerebral palsy, but with his grit and determination, he was able to live independently and earn a living from his can collection. He is known as Alton's greatest recycler ever of cans and he sparked a multitude of others around the region to collect cans on streets and highways for him.
Dale and his wife, Carol, cared for Charley, AKA Joey for more than 30 years. Charley lived with Roger and Pat Lowery at the end of his life in Wilmington, N.C., and they were also dear friends to him. Charley was buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Alton.
Charley died at age 76 on September 16, 2021.
Dale Neudecker was the coordinator of the Celebration of Life for Charley Moyer.
Dale said he thought the Celebration of LIfe for Charley was indeed a beautiful experience.
"All the participants in the celebration had stories to tell, with some overlapping," he said. "I think everyone got the impact of what Charlie Moyer meant to this community and all who knew him. Everyone considered it a blessing to have known him and I think we all learned something from Charley.
"He was born with cerebral palsy and an extreme disability, but he went beyond what most people could believe could be done. He proved to us that with hard work and determination, anything can be accomplished. People here loved and cared for him and he did so much to help the citizens of the community."
One photo taken many years ago by photographer John Badman showed what Charley was all about, Dale said.
"One of the pictures showed him underneath a car, stretched out to grab one can underneath a car," Dale said. "He was so determined he wanted to pick up each can he could see and recycle it."
Dale said he believes many collected cans and saved them for him that may not have bothered otherwise to recycle.
Charley actually was a huge help to Dale after Dale suddenly lost his wife to a heart situation. Dale saw Charley struggling near his Upper Alton office collecting cans and thought to himself, "If he can do it, I can too," and he worked to continue his life like before the sudden loss of his wife.
Dale always says: "I learned more from Charley than any other person in my life, and I know he taught me more than I taught him."