In Memoriam: Steve E. Holland
In the summer of 1995, Steve travelled to St. Petersburg on behalf of his local Rotary Club, which had raised funds to purchase a critically needed heart-lung machine for Heart to Heart’s first partner site, Children’s Hospital No. I.
With the formal announcement of our Going Global Campaign, Steve was all smiles at our 25th anniversary celebration. Since that time, Heart to Heart medical volunteers have travelled to Peru, Paraguay, Mexico, Guatemala, Armenia, and Costa Rica.
Heart to Heart mourns the loss of our great friend, wise advisor, and steadfast supporter, Steve Holland, who passed away on January 19. Steve’s professional and civic contributions were impressive and numerous. We would like to think that Heart to Heart came to occupy a special spot in Steve’s generous heart as he guided our young organization to firm financial ground, in the first decade of this century. Steve’s perspective—and perseverance—helped us expand our teaching and training beyond St. Petersburg, throughout the vast heartland of Russia.
During Steve’s tenure as our board chair, 15,000 children born with heart defects were operated on and saved by doctors whom Heart to Heart’s medical volunteers had trained. The impact and legacy of Steve’s contributions will grow in perpetuity. Last year, 2019, marked Heart to Heart’s 30th anniversary, and the children saved by our colleagues in Russia and Latin America now number more than 30,000 … and counting.
Our founder and medical director, Dr. Nilas Young, offered a tribute to Steve at our most recent board meeting. He reflected, “Steve was the consummate consensus builder. He was a prince of a guy, always in a positive mood, always smiling as he greeted us. To have him as the face of our board was our great fortune.”
The light cast by Steve Holland will continue to shine on the “brighter global future” that he enthusiastically and tirelessly worked to realize in his day-to-day efforts on Heart to Heart’s behalf.
A celebration of his life will be held at 1:00pm on February 22nd at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, Berkeley. The family requests donations be made to either: Heart to Heart Global Cardiac Care or The Berkeley Rotary Endowment Fund.