David L Holick

David L. Holick left us to be with Our Dear Lord on March 9, 2026, in Spokane, WA, his home since 2011. David dearly loved his family, and the life they built and enjoyed together on Moscow Mountain for over forty years.

David was born on July 29th, 1940 in Boulder CO, the eldest of two boys born to Clarence and Edna (Anderson) Holick. When David was 11 his father tragically passed away, leaving Edna to raise the boys on her own. Living on an acreage, the boys learned animal husbandry from their dad and the family continued to raise rabbits, chickens, a milk cow and tended several gardens to help make ends meet. David helped further contribute to supporting the family by delivering newspapers for the Denver Post for many years, receiving the “King of the Paperboys” award in recognition of his hard work and dedication.

After graduating from Arvada High School in 1958 and a year at the Colorado School of Mines, he joined the Navy as a sailor in the Nuclear Submarine program. Rapidly testing into the Naval ROTC program, he transferred back to Colorado to complete his bachelor’s degree in business at the University of Colorado.

As an NROTC student at the University of Colorado Boulder, David met his future wife, Diane (Duffield), who was in the Nursing program. They met in the school cafeteria, and it was love at first sight. The two married shortly before his deployment to Vietnam as a Navy officer. His first overseas assignment was as the Gunnery Officer on the destroyer USS Taylor. After completing that tour, he and 11 other officers were sent through Counterinsurgency Warfare Training before heading to Vietnam to serve as the Coastal Riverboat Advisors Group. Each riverboat was assigned a US Naval Officer along with a Vietnamese riverboat captain and crew. In 2020, David and the other 11 Riverboat Advisors were honored in person at the Mount Soledad Veteran’s Memorial with the installation of an engraved photo and monument to their incredible service to the United States.

After returning stateside, David served as an ROTC instructor in at the University of Idaho before separating from the Navy as a Lieutenant. David and Diane loved Moscow and the gorgeous Palouse Empire and settled down with their daughter and son, building a rich and fulfilling life on their rural property on Moscow Mountain. Dave put his Business Degree to work by beginning a long and successful career with Northwestern Mutual.

David’s smile, and rascally sense of humor always brought warmth to any room he was in. He loved practical jokes and was always on the lookout for fun. As a consistent instigator of tickle-fights and horseplay with his Grandchildren, he was threatened with being put in “Time Out” regularly. David was someone you could always count on to lend a hand when family or friends needed help. He was never one to take shortcuts, working long days at the office and coming home to work just as hard on their property, focused on building toward a better tomorrow for his family. He loved the outdoors, often taking the family camping, hunting, fishing or simply going out for the day collecting mushrooms, huckleberries or apples from their heirloom orchard. An avid birder, he took every opportunity to add to his life list, with binoculars and spotting scope always close at hand. Legend has it that birds around the Holick’s Moscow Mountain home might have changed their migratory patterns to take full advantage of his elaborately stocked and meticulously tended bird feeding stations. Dave also led the Audubon Christmas Bird Count for Moscow, Idaho for 11 straight years, forming many lifelong friendships along the way.

After over 40 years with Northwestern Mutual, David retired. A few years later, he and Diane left their Moscow mountain home and moved to Spokane to be closer to their daughter Julie and her family. The memories of his love, laughter, and steadfast presence leave his family and friends richer for having known him.

David is survived by his daughter Julie Holick (Brad) Orenstein, granddaughter Devon Orenstein, grandson Van Orenstein all from Spokane; his son Paul A. Holick of Columbus, MT; and his brother Ralph Holick of Idaho. To celebrate David and his remarkable life, a military honors service is planned for May 21 at the Washington State Veterans Cemetery in Medical Lake. He is greatly missed.