Gisele Holvik

Gisèle Holvik, a beloved daughter, sister, and friend to everyone who knew her, was taken from our lives on October 1, 2009. Gisèle was full of love which she shared generously with everyone around her. Besides her family and friends, Gisèle also had great love for animals and all of the adventures life had to offer. She has left an indelible mark on the lives of everyone she touched and will be desperately missed. Gisèle was born in Chicago, Illinois, August 6, l988, where her parents William Holvik and Micheline Escue were attending medical school. At the age of two, Gisèle's family, which now included baby sister Olivia, moved to San Diego, California where she spent the next three years growing up with her numerous aunts, uncles and cousins. Her fifth birthday was celebrated at her new home on Catalina Island. For two years, she enjoyed the adventure of swimming, roaming the island and accumulating the first of an endless list of friends. In 1995 the family moved to Visalia. Gisèle attended Royal Oaks Elementary School for five happy years which set her on the path to higher education. For Gisèle, learning was a great adventure and she loved all of her teachers. She attended La Joya Middle School and El Diamante High School. During these years she excelled at piano and took up the trumpet and saxophone. Gisèle was fiercely competitive and was active in AYSO soccer, cross country, Science Olympiad and Odyssey of the Mind. She also participated in jazz band, drama, and the school newspaper (The Dig). The American Cancer Society's Relay For Life was an important part of her high school experience and she was twice team captain for El Diamante. She was a California Scholarship Federation life member and a member of the first graduating class of El Diamante High School. Her love of animals led her to volunteer for Valley Oak SPCA, but only briefly because she adopted too many animals: on her first day she brought home a beautiful cat for her dad along with a litter of five motherless kittens which she hand raised. Gisèle was a world traveler visiting England, France, Italy, China, Belize, Guatemala, the Bahamas, and Mexico, making numerous trips with her dad or mom, stepfather Tim Bourne, Olivia and stepsisters Kate and Mary Beth Bourne. Gisèle was starting her fourth year at U.C. San Diego where she was a beloved member of Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority. She was majoring in Animal Physiology and aspired to be a zoo keeper. Gisèle's passing will leave us with a huge hole in our hearts. She is survived by her parents, her grandparents Suzanne Escue and Nelson Escue, sisters Olivia Holvik, Kate Bourne and Mary Beth Bourne, many aunts and uncles, numerous cousins and friends. A celebration of Gisèle's life will be held at Sunset Park at 1:00 p.m. Saturday, October 10. In lieu of flowers, Gisèle's family requests donations be made to Valley Oak SPCA in her name.