GARY HOLYOKE

To my mom, Wanda, he was a devoted husband for 56 wonderful years.

And to me, as his only child, he was my hero… and my biggest fan.

My dad had one of the gentlest souls you could ever meet. In all the years that people knew him, it was almost impossible to ever see him angry. He carried himself with kindness, patience, and quiet strength. He was the kind of person who made you feel safe just by being around him.

One of the most beautiful ways I’ve ever heard him described actually came from his grandson (my son) Dylan. Dylan said on Tuesday after hearing the news,

“I don’t have one negative memory about Geegaw.”

Think about that for a moment. Not one. That says more about the kind of man he was than anything else ever could. And Jace shared,

“He was truly my role model in life. We are so alike, he loves animals, I love animals, and I have his middle name that will carry on.”

He was incredibly proud of his family. His love for his grandsons, Dylan and Jace, was beyond measure. Dylan followed a path of service, becoming a firefighter, a husband, and now a father himself. And Jace continues to chase his dream of becoming a veterinarian. Watching them grow into the men they are today brought him a pride that was impossible to hide.

Education was also something we shared. He graduated from the University of South Florida, and I was proud to follow in his footsteps as a USF graduate. And his grandson Jace continued that same legacy. Go Bulls.

My dad was also a Vietnam veteran who proudly served his country in the United States Army with the 1st Air Cavalry Division. Like so many of his generation, he answered the call to serve with courage and dedication. It was another example of the quiet strength and sense of duty that defined who he was.

He worked for Moen for 27 years before retirement. He found that retirement was boring and then accepted a position with the James A. Haley Veterans Hospital as an eligibility counselor.

He was also a 6th degree Grand Master in Tae Kwon Do, which says a lot about his discipline, dedication, and strength. But if you knew him, you also knew that his greatest strength wasn’t in his martial arts, it was in his character. The patience, humility, and respect that Tae Kwon Do teaches were things he lived every day.

And if there was one thing everyone knew about him, it was that he could fix anything. Truly anything. He had that MacGyver ability to look at something broken and somehow bring it back to life. Whether it was rebuilding cars from the ground up or repairing something around the house, he had this incredible combination of patience, skill, and determination. If it was broken, he believed it could be fixed.

And maybe that’s part of why losing him feels so hard. Because he was the one who fixed things.

This loss feels sudden and too soon. They say only the good die young. And even though he lived a full and meaningful life, in my eyes… he was still young, with much more life to live and many more memories to make with his great-grandson and future great grandchildren.

But what gives me comfort is knowing the kind of life he lived. A life filled with love for his wife, pride in his family, kindness toward others, and a quiet strength that shaped all of us.

His legacy lives on through every person here today, through his daughter, his grandchildren, his great-grandchild, and everyone whose life he touched.

He also lives on in the lives of those that received his kidneys and liver through organ donation. Even in death he was still able to help others.

Dad, thank you for being my hero.

Thank you for always believing in me.

And thank you for showing all of us what a life of kindness, humility, and love truly looks like.

We will miss you more than words can say… but we will carry you with us always.

A Gathering of family and friends will be held at Blount & Curry FH-Carrollwood, 3207 W Bearss Ave, Tampa, FL 33618, US, on March 18, 2026, from 10:00 am to 11:00 am, followed by a Celebration of Life at the same location on March 18, 2026, from 11:00 am to 12:00 pm.

A Committal with Military Honors will take place at Florida National Cemetery, 6502 SW 102nd Ave, Bushnell, FL 33513, US, on March 18, 2026, from 1:30 pm to 2:00 pm.