In 1966, Jerry Moyes and his wife, Vickie, said goodbye to their native Utah and drove south to Arizona in pursuit of new opportunities. As they approached Phoenix, they made a choice that would shape not only their own future, but also the future of an entire community.
“We made a righthand turn off the Black Canyon Freeway 57 years ago, and we're still here,” says Jerry, founder and chairman and CEO emeritus of Swift Transportation. “We’ve just always been in the West Valley.”
Now, Jerry is giving back to the community that he and Vickie have called home for almost 60 years by making a philanthropic investment that will transform the landscape of pediatric care in the West Valley.
A work ethic rooted in small-town America
Both Jerry and Vickie grew up in small farming communities outside of Ogden, Utah—Jerry in Plain City and Vickie in Taylor. Jerry’s grandfather and uncle were farmers, while his father was in the trucking business. Vickie’s father owned service stations and had a small farm with cattle and horses.
From an early age, Jerry and Vickie labored alongside their families, doing everything from thinning beets and picking tomatoes to hauling hay and caring for the livestock.
“Growing up in small-town America was really important,” Jerry says. “The work ethic out there was unbelievable. I think that rubbed off onto us.”
He adds, “We learned to work hard, and hopefully work smart at the same time.”
Jerry and Vickie met in junior high and dated throughout high school. They went on to attend Weber State University in Ogden, where Jerry majored in business and Vickie studied cosmetology. After graduating in 1966, the couple married and set out for Arizona.
- “Growing up in small-town America was really important. The work ethic out there was unbelievable. I think that rubbed off onto us.”Jerry MoyesFounder and Chairman and CEO Emeritus, Swift Transportation
Balancing business and family
After the pair settled in the West Valley, Jerry followed in his father’s footsteps and went into the trucking business. He founded Swift Transportation with one truck, eventually building it into one of the largest trucking companies in the U.S. The work ethic instilled in Jerry during his upbringing in Utah was pivotal to the company’s success.
“I always said, ‘I will not ask anybody to do something I haven't done, whether it's drive a truck, change tires, be a mechanic or whatever,’” he says. Under Jerry’s leadership, the company flourished. By the time Swift merged with Knight Transportation in 2017, it had grown to over 20,000 trucks.
As the company expanded, so did Jerry and Vickie’s family. The couple has 10 adopted children who today range in age from 54 to 29.
“Family's always been very, very important to us,” Jerry says. “We've always tried to be very, very family oriented, and the size of our family has been very important to us.”
Adds Vickie, “You don't usually get to adopt 10. We had three and figured we were done, and then the phone just kept ringing.”
Today, the extended Moyes clan includes 22 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren, all of whom live in the West Valley. “It's important to have them all close,” says Jerry.
A commitment to helping others
From the beginning, giving back has been a way of life for the Moyes family. “We've always been involved in philanthropy, even when we didn't have anything,” Jerry says.
At Swift Transportation, Jerry started Swift Charities, which allows employees to make charitable contributions through payroll deduction. The company matches the gifts, and the funds are used to assist employees facing hardship, to provide scholarships for the children of Swift employees, and to support local charitable organizations in communities where Swift has a presence.
The family also established a scholarship program for high school students in Jerry’s hometown in Utah, with approximately 125 students receiving college scholarships each year. Plans are in the works to set up a similar program in Vickie’s hometown.
Locally, the family's philanthropy has centered around West Valley organizations that serve children and families. In Glendale, their support built the Swift Kids Branch of the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Valley. They have been longtime supporters of the West Valley Child Crisis Center—now called Hope Community Services—and its child welfare and behavioral health programs.
“We've really focused on the West Valley as well as children’s and women's issues,” Jerry says.
- “We drive by the new Phoenix Children’s Hospital that's going in up there, and we're very excited about supporting that. We're excited to see the progress that will bring.”Jerry MoyesFounder and Chairman and CEO Emeritus, Swift Transportation
Closing the gap
During their nearly six decades in the West Valley, Jerry and Vickie have watched the area transform from farmland and empty desert into one of the fastest-growing communities in the country.
“The West Valley has progressed very rapidly. There was nothing out here in the area when we moved out here in '66,” says Jerry. “There's a lot of industry moved in out here, and if you drive out around the 303 freeway out there, you can't believe what's going on out there from a building standpoint. I think that the West Valley has done very well and has seen a lot of growth out here.”
Despite the progress that’s been made, the region hasn’t always kept pace with the needs of a growing population. “I believe the West Valley has been neglected from a number of areas, whether it's education or health care,” Jerry says.
When he learned that Phoenix Children’s was building Phoenix Children’s Hospital – Arrowhead Campus in Glendale, Jerry saw an opportunity to help close the gap. His $5 million gift to Phoenix Children’s will support the health system’s efforts to bring pediatric health care closer to home for West Valley families.
“We wanted to do something that's important and will benefit children and families for a long time,” Jerry says. “We drive by the new Phoenix Children’s Hospital that's going in up there, and we're very excited about supporting that. We're excited to see the progress that will bring.”
Vickie adds, “I remember it was orange groves, absolutely beautiful orange groves. Now there's a gorgeous hospital that's going in there.”
In celebration of their generosity, their names will be permanently displayed on the new hospital’s exterior—a symbol of their enduring commitment to the health and well-being of the youngest members of their community.
Help Phoenix Children's bring world-class pediatric care to more Arizona children, when and where they need it.
