Glen Arthur Holden

A Life Well Lived - The Legacy of Glen Holden: A Life of Leadership, Innovation, and Passion for Polo

It is with great sadness that we share with you the passing of Glen Holden on April 18, 2024, at the age of 96. Glen was surrounded by his loving family his son; Glen Holden Jr. (Jeep) and daughter Geannie Holden Sheller.

Ambassador Glen Holden was a passionate family man, distinguished business leader, prolific polo player, a US diplomat, a champion of student success and leadership, and a great friend.

Glen Arthur Holden was born in Boise, Idaho and spent most of his youth on a ranch in McMinnville. After his Honorable discharge from the Navy in 1947, he enrolled at the University of Oregon and quickly became a pillar of the community. He found his calling while working at a campus clothing store. It was there he met a local insurance agent who sparked his interest in the industry. He took classes in insurance and finance, graduating with a BS in Business Administration in 1951. He became president of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity and President of the Interfraternity Council. During his time as a student, Ambassador Holden worked to reclaim the charter for the fraternity, which earned him the title of Man of Principle, and later, the Oxford Cup-Beta Theta Pi's most prestigious alumni award. In 2014, the fraternity's chapter house was renamed Holden Hall. The University of Oregon not only provided the foundation for his professional career, but more importantly, his family. There, he met Gloria Ann McClintock. Shortly after meeting Gloria, Glen drove back to McMinnville to break up with his McMinnville girlfriend, so he could properly ask Gloria on a date and pin her with his Beta pin. The beginning of their storied romance. They married shortly after graduation.

Considered one of the principal innovators and leaders of change and development of the variable annuity and life insurance industry in the nation, Ambassador Holden is world renowned for successfully leading the sale of insurance products through major New York Stock Exchange member companies, as well as issuing the first interest-sensitive life insurance products in the United States. He spearheaded the variable annuity product in the US and helped develop laws and regulations in all fifty states. This led to him becoming the inaugural recipient of the Variable Annuity Industries Hall of Fame honor. In 1973, he founded Security First Group (later renamed The Holden Group), where he acted as chair, CEO, and principal stockholder. He built a large financial services company across the country, managing more than $10 Billion in assets. The company provided investment and insurance services to public employees, including those in Florida, Tennessee, Texas and California. After nearly three decades, he sold the company, and THG is now a wholly owned subsidiary of the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company.
Ambassador Holden's strong commitment to private enterprise led to his nomination by President George H. W. Bush as United States Ambassador to Jamaica. President Bush, with bipartisan support, appointed Holden to be the U.S. Ambassador to Jamaica from 1989-1993, playing a key role in formulating U.S. policy in the Caribbean. While serving, Holden was able to attract more than $400 million of American private capital and implemented the Enterprise for Americas Initiative Policy-a policy that served as a basis for the North American Foreign Trade Agreement (NAFTA). During his tenure as Ambassador, he traveled to 29 countries representing the United States.

Glen's belief that "all obstacles and controversies have reasonable and valuable solutions" is best evidenced through his philanthropy, service, and engagement in so many communities. It would be challenging to identify all the initiatives that Ambassador Holden helped launch or organizations he was involved in. His numerous civic, cultural, and educational activities included Pepperdine University's Board of Regents, The Performing Arts Center Board of Governors, Hugh O'Brian Youth Foundation Board of Governors, founder of the Citizens for American Educational Foundation, the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges member, and the International Foundation for Learning Disabilities of Los Angeles member. He received two honorary doctorates from Pepperdine's Graduate School of Education and Psychology. He received the American Humanities Hand to Youth and Exemplar Award in 1986. Following his service as Ambassador to Jamaica, he served as the Chairman of American Friends of Jamaica for 14 years.

Outside of his career, Ambassador Holden was a steadfast horseman. His love of horses began when his dad brought home a pony for him when he was only three. He helped train horses to earn spending money during the Great Depression. He was a long time member of The Rancheros Visitadores (Los Bustardos), an invitation-only riding group, considered the most elite equestrian organization in the world that annually gathered for a week of horsemanship activities, food and entertainment culminating in a 60-mile ride from Santa Barbara to Solvang through the Santa Ynez valley. Glen shared the trail with hundreds of horsemen from in and out of the US including President Ronald Reagan and General PX Kelley, former Commandant of the Marine Corps. On a trip to Washington, DC, General Kelley invited Glen to recreate the ride that Thomas Jefferson took in 1801 when selecting a site for the location of the Marine Barracks in Washington, "albeit with a lot more traffic," Holden would joke.

Holden loved horses, but his passion was polo-a time-honored sport in which teams on horseback compete to drive a ball into the opponent's goal. Along with his Gehache team -- Holden's initials in Spanish -- he won the Pacific Coast Open, the Governor's Cup, America Cup, and in 1993, the crown jewel of US Polo - the US Open Polo Championship. His impact on the polo world is remarkable. Ambassador Holden played alongside royalty such as King Charles, and the Maharajah of Jaipur and many great polo players including Bob Skene, Ruben Gracida, Daniel Gonzalez, and Alfonso Giannico, all who became lifelong friends. After retiring from playing, he played host to the Prince and Princess of Wales as part of their US Honeymoon trip.

His success on the field is only outdone by his contributions off the field. Soon after playing at the Santa Barbara Polo & Racquet Club in Carpinteria, he joined the board of trustees. The club was facing financial hardship, and Holden played a pivotal role in restoring its stability by personally guaranteeing its debts. He served as Pacific Coast Circuit Governor for 11 years and was a founding member and later its President of the Federation of International Polo. In recognition for his outstanding contributions to the sport, Ambassador Holden was inducted into the Museum of Polo and Hall of Fame in 2002.

Nothing was more important to Glen Holden than his family. He is survived by his son, Glen Arthur Holden Jr, his daughter Geannie Holden Sheller and son-in-law Michael Sheller, eight grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren. He was predeceased in death in 2019 by his beloved wife Gloria, his second daughter, Georgianne Holden Stone, and his first grandchild, Holden Richard Stone in 2020.

He will be remembered for his legacy and missed by his family, the international polo community, and friends throughout the world - anyone who encountered his affability, integrity, generous hospitality, and deep sense of friendship.

Ambassador Glen A. Holden, a true gentleman who was the embodiment of a life well lived.