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October 3, 2008
‘Tough Little Guy’
David Holder will be remembered for his spirit, determination and positive attitude.
Stacy Karten
Contributing Editor
Last winter, Cornell University’s lacrosse and basketball teams sent some autographed jerseys to David L. Holder, a resident of Washington, D.C. Mr. Holder, who graduated from Cornell in 1995, played lacrosse for the Big Red, earning the team’s Charlie Hustle Award.
He was in the midst of battling lymphoma when the jerseys arrived, and he wrote the following entry on his blog, “Dave Getting Stronger”: “These jerseys remind me of the valuable life lessons that came out of my college playing days; along with reminding me of our crazy confidence, bold enthusiasm and endless energy (a great memory right now). Cancer wreaks havoc on everyone alike, but the ravages of disease seem to hit athletes in a particular way. When you used to be able to make your body do exactly what you wanted — run, scoop, juke, shoot — it’s hard to be as weak as an infant because your immune system is trashed.”
Mr. Holder died Sept. 12 at Johns Hopkins Hospital after a 14-month battle with cancer. He was 35.
A dedicated family man, Mr. Holder was a friend to many, a successful businessman, an athlete and a contributor to the community, say friends and associates. They say he loved life and maintained a positive attitude throughout the past 14 months.
Mr. Holder and his wife of eight years, Liza, have two children, Eli, 4, and Reed, 1. “David would like to be remembered for the importance of his family, his friends and his community,” said Mrs. Holder. “He connected people. He was fighting positive until the end.”
A Cincinnati native, Mr. Holder grew up in Ruxton. His mother, Nancy, described her son as compassionate, thoughtful and spiritual.
“He really cared a lot about people who didn’t have privileges. It was the way he dealt with people, and he was always interested in meeting new people. He had a spiritual bent,” she said, noting that singing the Friday night Kiddush prayer after he became a bar mitzvah at Beth Am Synagogue was important to Mr. Holder. His mother also fondly recalled Mr. Holder and his friend, Jay West, starting a youth lacrosse program in Patterson Park while students at the University of Maryland School of Law.
At Cornell, Mr. Holder befriended Mike Niccolini, and they became business partners in 1999 in two Bethesda-based companies — Access Capital Mortgage and Greenleaf Title & Escrow.
“He was very special,” said Mr. Niccolini. “He was a good father, good husband and excellent businessman. He was concerned about public education. He started a lacrosse program at the KIPP Schools in Washington, D.C.
“Dave was very spiritual,” he added. “His faith carried him 14 months. He fought hard. He had a lot to fight for. He was a tough little guy.”
Mr. Holder’s interest in public education led him to become involved in the Baltimore Curriculum Project, where he served on its board of directors for three years. The non-profit organization operates five charter schools in Baltimore and executive director Alison Perkins-Cohen said Mr. Holder brought a lot of energy to the project.
“He had a longtime interest in education,” she said. “He was very creative. He chaired our finance committee and moved our assets to get better returns. His stewardship will be missed.”
As evidenced by the approximately 700 people who attended his funeral, Mr. Holder’s life was filled with friendships.
“He was an extremely loyal friend,” said Fred Lohr, who was friends with Mr. Holder since nursery school. “He was a positive, optimistic person. He was a great networker in the best sense of the word. He delighted in people.”
A 1991 graduate of Friends School, where he played lacrosse and soccer and was sports editor of the school newspaper, Mr. Holder received the school’s Arthur O. Gray Award for athletic ability during his senior year.
“I’ve known him for 12 years. He was big on alumni involvement and very supportive of events in the Maryland and D.C. area,” said Amy Langrehr, the school’s alumni director. “When you asked him to help, he would say, ‘What can I do?’ He was the kind of person who, if you met him, you would want to be friends.”
In one of his blog entries, Mr. Holder wrote, “Fighting cancer is not fun competition, although it put on a good fight. I can’t wait to compete against a friendly foe, one that I can see, on a court with rules, with egos, weaknesses and strengths, strategy, and teamwork; and win or lose, everyone’s happy and alive.”
In addition to his wife, children and mother, Mr. Holder is survived by his father, Lawrence Holder, and two sisters, Annie Campbell and Elizabeth Holder.
Contributions in his memory may be made to the David L. Holder Education Foundation, 409 Washington Ave., Suite 1010, Baltimore, Md., 21204.