2013 HAMDIJA "HUM" TODOROVAC

This year’s Veterans Page features Hamdija Todorovac, most of us know him as “Hum”. Hum has been a fixture of the Lehigh Valley Soccer scene since the 1970s. He was born in Banja Luka (Former Yugoslavia, now Bosnia-Herzegovina) in 1950. He learned to play soccer with friends, sometimes using a homemade ball. Hum left Bosnia at age 21, working in Austria as a machinist for 2 years, playing soccer locally and learning English. He immigrated to the US in 1973, moved to the Lehigh Valley and married his better half, Tori, in 1974. Their two daughters are Leslie and Leila (both proud Americans, Hum will happily tell you!). He plunged in to the local soccer scene in 1976 and started officiating in 1979.

Between soccer, work and family life, he earned an engineering degree at Lafayette College. In 1988, Armin Geist suggested an Old-Timers team for Allentown’s Lehigh Saengerbund Club. Hum and Joe Dueh Sr. assembled the squad that made their first CanAM tournament appearance in 1988 (Team photo above, Hum is standing 5th from left). Hum played for the winning 1989 team, the first time a US team ever won the CanAM tournament. Hum’s position was forward and he was known for his “part the sea” move, with defenders bouncing off him, followed by a hard shot. Although no longer playing, Hum works year round as a Ref, Ref Assignor for local leagues and as a registered official for both High School and College games. Hum’s favorite tournament memories include singing on the bus and time spent with the old guard: Joe Dueh Sr., Louis Motta, the Garcias and many others. As the CanAM tradition heads into its 37th year, we recognize Hum for his contributions to the tournament, Lehigh Saengerbund and the Lehigh Valley soccer community.
Back