It is with sadness we announce the passing of a fellow mountain-biker. Jeff Holm, state GIS Coordinator (1994 to 2007), friend, co-worker, and husband passed away last night October 22, 2009 surrounded by his family and friends.
Shortly after retiring from state government in 2007, Jeff was diagnosed with methothelioma cancer. He had aimed to do more mountain bike riding, to work on putting his Porsche sports car back together, to travel with his wife Susan and do many other things that retirement affords.
I (Mtn-Biker Man) will remember forever the 6-day mountain bike trip that Jeff’s wife Susan, and my wife Naomi gave us both for Christmas a few short years ago where we were able to s-t-r-e-t-c-h it out to 13 days of hard riding in areas from Fruita Colorado to Moab Utah.
Background: Jeff was born and raised in Minnesota. He served in the Navy for two years, based out of Bremerton, was stationed for some time in Viet Nam and worked special operations in other unnamed places. (His family laughs over the letters from Jeff that were screened and mostly blackened out.) After the Navy he attended college here and decided to stay in the Northwest because of the mountains, hiking and climbing. Jeff worked in various IT capacities for the state, the vast majority with the Department of Information Systems. Jeff had a profound passion for GIS work and stewardship that overflowed to his outside activities and passions with mountain biking, cross-country skiing, board-sailing, sailing, and good coffee. And yes, his wife Susan was involved in these as well! Jeff is survived by his wife (Susan), mother (87), three adoring sisters, two compassionate sister-in-laws, and a wonderful mouser cat “Sneakers.”
Let there be thanks we had the opportunity to know, work, and bike with him.
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