Holte’s lifetime of giving ends at 80
Marley Holte was many things in his 80 years: a father, a
teacher, a school administrator, a businessman, a politician. But
most of all Marley Holte will be remembered for his limitless
generosity.
Holte’s lifetime of giving ends at 80
Marley Holte was many things in his 80 years: a father, a teacher, a school administrator, a businessman, a politician. But most of all Marley Holte will be remembered for his limitless generosity.
Holte, a resident of San Juan Bautista, died last Saturday at Stanford Medical Center following a period of failing health.
One of Holte’s closest friends, David Baumgartner, said he’d known Holte for 30 years. “We actually met through my son, when Marley was the principal at Rancho San Justo. I was called in regarding a mooning situation,” Baumgartner said.
Later, after Holte retired from education, he and Baumgartner were involved in real estate together and Baumgartner served as Holte’s broker.
“When we first started working together we used to argue like a married couple,” Baumgartner said. But there was a lot of love between the two men. Baumgartner said that many people saw the philanthropic work that Holte did, but many didn’t realize how funny he was.
“We used to go out at play golf and Marley would determine his score beforehand. So, he’d write down an 84 and then we’d start playing and when he got to 84, he’d quit. That way he could tell people he shot an 84,” Baumgartner said.
Holte had no ability to turn down a cause. He helped people whether they were homeless or children in foster care.
“He was a delegator; he would gather a committee and delegate and he would do that very well. Later on, I told him he had to let go of a few causes because he couldn’t help everyone,” Baumgartner said.
Friend and neighbor Ruben Lopez had known Holte since 1974. At the time he was running for County Superintendent of Schools and the two men became close friends.
“I’d just moved back here from San Francisco and I hadn’t been in town 10 minutes before he got me involved with community service. First it was the San Juan Rotary Club and then with the [Thanksgiving and Christmas] dinners.”
One of Holte’s greatest contributions was the Marley Holte Community Assistance Program that provided free dinners on Thanksgiving and Christmas. He started the Christmas dinners about 20 years ago, after he and his wife decided to pool their money and feed the needy instead of buying gifts for each other. Several years later they started organizing Thanksgiving dinners as well. The Holiday Dinners began in 1985 and have continued since. The annual dinners, which have doubled in size since their inception, are funded entirely through donations from area businesses and community support.
When Holte Holte first moved to Hollister in 1966 he taught at R.O. Hardin School and later became a principal. He served in that position, at both R.O. Hardin and Rancho, for almost 20 years.
After retiring from Hollister School District he went into real estate and eventually opened Crown Realty, according to Baumgartner. In 1994, the same year he opened his real estate agency, he served as the mayor of San Juan Bautista.
Holte had a laundry list of community service organizations he was involved with including: president of the San Benito County Little League; a Hollister Parks and Recreation commissioner; director of the San Juan Bautista Chamber of Commerce; member of the San Juan Bautista Planning Commission; president of the 33rd District Agricultural Fair Board; chairman of the Rotary Club and president of the San Benito County League of the League of United Latin American Citizens.
“I met Marley when he sold me my house eight years ago. I also served with him on the San Benito Youth Services Board,” Mark Steele said. “Looking at all his contributions, he was an angel to the kids in San Benito County. He would literally exhaust himself giving to others – to the point that he couldn’t do it anymore and he was doing that until the end. I had the opportunity to drive Marley in several parades over the years in both San Juan and Hollister, like two to three times per year. We would drive through town and I was always amazed. He’d wave at everyone and everyone would wave back and he knew every person that was waving at us. Kids that are now adults, he’d know their names from 30 years prior.”
During his many years of service Holte racked up some amazing acolytes including “Realtor of the Year,” in 1993 and “Chamber of Commerce Man of the Year” in 1996. He was also a staunch backer for the creation of a local homeless shelter.
Holte never wanted his friends and family to mourn his death. Rather he wanted people to celebrate his life. Baumgartner said that he and Holte had been to a funeral several years earlier and the family of the person that died had a brass band at the reception.
“We want to have a party, he didn’t want the occasion to be sad. We’re looking for a brass band,” Baumgartner said.
Holte was an avid sports fan according to his friends. He was involved in two fantasy football leagues and Steele said that he took Holte to two football games in recent years.
Baumgartner added that he and Holte were two of the most devout Dodgers fans in Hollister. He thinks that his friend might have had something to do with the amazing outcome of the Dodgers game Monday night.
“I just can’t say enough about the guy. I’m very jealous of what he could get done and what he accomplished,” Baumgartner said.
A graveside service will be conducted on Sept. 27 at 9:30 a.m. at the IOOF Cemetery in Hollister, followed by a funeral service at 11 a.m. at the First Presbyterian Church in Hollister.
