Major "Gene" Holland's Obituary
Gene was an outgoing and personable man, who never met a stranger. He graduated from Military High School with honors and immediately enlisted in the Navy. After serving his country in Korea he moved backed to Montgomery, Alabama. It was here he met Joyce (wife of 59 years) while she was visiting her sister Ann. It was love at first sight and they were soon married. Joyce was from Mobile and wanted to start their life together there. They relocated to Grand Bay, where Gene lived for the rest of his life. Soon after moving to Grand Bay, Gene took a job with Mississippi Chemical. He was an electrician by trade but there he became a chemical operator. Gene spent the rest of his career there, eventually retiring at the age of 70. Gene and Joyce together raised two daughters, Trisha and Cynthia, adding two grandchildren, Buddy and Suzanne. Gene loved all sports, and would spend hours watching any game that was playing. The Atlanta Braves were his favorite baseball teams, and there was no other football team except the University of Alabama Crimson Tide as far as he was concerned. He always had an Alabama hat or shirt on, and was very particular about color combinations so as not to accidentally represent another team. When his granddaughter went to school there, he loved talking about Alabama with her (even though she didn't speak football). PawPaw was the best father figure a child could have, and both Buddy and Suzanne had many cherished summers spent with him and Memaw in Grand Bay. Gene was also very excited when our local University, South Alabama acquired their own local college football team "The Jags". After his daughter Cynthia graduated there, she went to work for the university where she was able to obtain tickets for him and his son-in-law Butch. They even had a spot in the Health System BBQ tent (where the attached photo was taken). Gene would always tell everyone that the Waffle House in Grand Bay was instrumental to putting their city on the map. Gene still believed that he and his granddaughter Suzanne invented the "chocolate chip waffle" that is now on the Waffle House menu. Every visit from 1990 until it was a menu item, PawPaw would carry a zip-lock bag of chocolate chips on their breakfast trips to Waffle House for Suzanne's special order. Once his grandson Buddy reached the age of 16, he took a job at Waffle House as a cook. The Waffle House traditions did not stop there, and after retiring his ritual became breakfast every weekend morning with Butch. He often had weekday breakfast "meetings" after retirement with his life-long friends Lamont Lavender and Mac Sawyer. Gene's father-in-law used to say, "Gene should have ran for Mayor of Grand Bay" because of his knowledge and love of the coming and goings within the community. A photo of him is adorns the Waffle House wall for all the see.Family, Friends, Football and Food were Gene's favorite things.
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