John C. HOLMAN

1934 - 2020

Age 85 Passed away June 13, 2020 at Waverly Gardens in Minnesota with family by his side. John was born on December 4, 1934 in St. Paul, Minnesota, to Martha and James Holman. After graduating from St. Paul Academy, where he captained the football team, John went east and began what would become a proud lifetime relationship with his beloved Williams College. Despite his modest stature, he starred as a defenseman on the Williams hockey team and was elected co-captain his senior year. He married his high school sweetheart, Kay Stoddard, following his sophomore year. After graduation, they moved back to St. Paul where he began selling industrial equipment and then transitioned to the warehouse business. In 1986, he raised the capital to purchase his own warehouse, which became Alltemp Distribution Company, and later expanded into business records storage. He worked at Alltemp until his retirement. After Kay died in 1995, John married Marna Corra. Over the years, John was active in a number of trade associations as well as Jaycees and Rotary and served on the board of several non-profits. John was a generous benefactor to St. Paul Children's Hospital, SteppingStone Theatre, and Williams College, where he served as the class treasurer for several years. John was a very active person and rarely sat down. There were always never-ending projects to do, and he would enlist anyone around him to help. In addition to hockey, John loved skiing. His greatest athletic passion, however, was tennis and he enjoyed the game until his legs would no longer let him. For John, there was nothing like playing tennis first thing in the morning followed by a cold beer and conversation with friends who shared his enthusiasm for the game. John also loved boating, often taking his 42-foot Grand Banks trawler up and down the east coast to visit old friends and of course making new ones. He would occasionally take the boat to the Bahamas or up the west coast of Florida. John's favorite place on earth was his cabin in Marine On St. Croix, MN, where he spent his summers since 1962. John shared the property with his parents and his sister, Martie Norton. Though still summering in Marine, later in life he lived in a tennis community in Vero Beach, Florida, where-always looking for a project-he started a kayak program. John was predeceased by both of his wives. He is survived by his four daughters, Sue Holman-Sutich (Mark), Mary Vance (Mike), Martie Herrick (Brian), and Josie Holman (Gerry Mrosla), two step-sons, Henry Corra, and Andy Corra and their families, as well as 9 grandchildren, RJ, Jonathan, Matthew, Katie, Kelly, Jack, Alexandra, Michael, Christopher, and 6 great-grandchildren. He is also survived by his sister, Martie Norton, nieces, nephew, their children, as well as honorary family member, Bea Williams-Wilson, who was his caregiver, friend, and life-saver for over three years. He will be missed dearly by a host of friends and by his cat, Oakland. We will have a celebration of life with family and friends at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the St. Croix River Association. Condolences may be offered to the family at Legacy.com.