James G. Jimmy HOLT

Funeral services for James Gordon "Jimmy" Holt, 78, of Eastlake, will be 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 17, 2009, at McMahon-Coyne-Vitantonio Funeral Home, 38001 Euclid Ave., Willoughby. A service will also be conducted 10 a.m. Friday, Nov. 20, 2009, in the Chapel at High Funeral Home, 101 College St., McMinnville, Tenn. (Family and friends are asked to please meet in the Chapel at High's Friday.) Jimmy passed away suddenly of a heart attack while visiting family in Tennessee. This is something he enjoyed doing each fall once he had finished taking care of his beloved park, Wes Point Park, in downtown Willoughby. Born Feb. 17, 1931, in Warren County, Tenn., he was the 13th child of 18, born to Walter Willard and Mary Belle (Gann) Holt. Raised in a small two bedroom farmhouse back in Morrison, Tenn., he lost his dad at the age of nine, and began working in nurseries as a young man, just to help his mother with the family's needs. He was the first of his siblings to graduate high school and then entered the U.S. Air Force in 1951, so that he could not only serve his country, but attend college while doing so. He was honorably discharged in 1952, due the hardship loss of siblings in service, and returned home to find work to help take care of his younger siblings so they could finish school. He came to Ohio and in 1954, went to work at TRW Valve Division, where he retired as a supervisor after 38 years of service. His love for the outdoors was a big part of his life. Almost as big a part of him as the southern accent that he kept throughout his many years here in the north. He was instrumental in the formation of the Willoughby Over 30 Sunday Morning Mens Softball League back in the early 1970s. He managed teams, played and coached for more than 25 years. He continued that love affair with softball well after retiring as a manager, by not only going to the fields to watch local games, but following local teams to tournaments in various states. He loved the hats of teams from all over, and wore them proudly, as they would give him one of to sport around town. And he did. In his early years at TRW, he played in the TRW Old Guard softball league and also enjoyed bowling in TRW leagues at Palisades I in Euclid and then with his kids and grandsons in a mixed couples league Sunday afternoons at Wickliffe Lanes. Many will best remember him as the man who took care of the roses at Wes Point Park. He loved it. He loved Willoughby. The charm of the people and the town was close to his heart. He didn't even let a bout of colon cancer get between him and that park. He was taking his chemo and still caring for it, so others would enjoy it in the summer. That would have been five years ago this February. He loved when people asked him about his care of the beautiful roses, and had been even known to go to homes of people he knew just to help teach them how to care for them. His last day at the park was when he cut them back for the last time, Friday, Oct. 30. He was already making plans for next spring. The true lights in his life was his family though, especially his grandsons, Michael and Mitchell. He could not have been prouder and would bend anyone's ear who would take a minute (okay, two) and listen to him as he would tell you all about them. His family will miss him so much. "Our hearts and our circle is broken." Survivors are his daughter, Cynthia (John, the man he called his "son") Buchanan; beloved grandsons, Michael John Buchanan and Mitchell James Buchanan; siblings, Louise Young, Rosie (J.C.) Bouldin, Rayburn (Martha) Holt, Dillard (Willie) Holt, Helen Roberts and Earlene Vickers, all of Tennessee; many nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews; dear friend and son-in-law's mother, Ailene Meintel; and so many wonderful friends that he cherished so dearly. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife, Frances L. (Chapman) Holt; parents; and 11 siblings. Friends may call from 1 to 3 and 6 to 9 p.m. Monday and Tuesday at McMahon-Coyne-Vitatonio Funeral Home in Willoughby and from 1 to 9 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 19, 2009, at High's Funeral Home in McMinnville. Burial will follow the service Friday, Nov. 20, 2009, in Gardens of Memory Cemetery in McMinnville. The family suggests contributions in his name to the City of Willoughby, c/o Mayor Dave Anderson, for the purchase of roses at Wes Point Park in the spring, or the local Gideon's International, P.O. Box 871, Painesville, OH 44077, for the placement of Bibles in his memory. Condolences and online obituary at .