Memories of Timothy Ray Holderfield

In memory of

Timothy Ray Holderfield

Wills Point, TX, USA

March 10, 1957 - August 12, 2020

Mar 10, 1957 - Aug 12, 2020

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Dan Holderfield

Tim and Dan Holderfield

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Robert Holderfield

Dan Holderfield

REMEMBRANCES
Hi everyone. This is Dan Holderfield, the younger brother of Tim Holderfield. I’m writing this message halfway around the world from the United States, in Australia. I was only 10 when Tim moved away from our home in Marion, IL to attend college four hours away in Normal, IL. He would return four years later with diploma in hand, but only two years later he would move to Texas for work. So, Tim and I were apart for some 80% of his life. Nevertheless, I have pleasant memories of our time together and want to share a few remembrances. For example, I remember running home during a hail storm to find him waiting on the front porch ready to catch me with open arms. He often watched us kids when Mom was not available. I remember him and our oldest brother Tom backpacking the Rocky Mountains and having all of their gear laid out on the bed in the basement. I remember him picking me up from high school. He wasn’t the best driver. One time he wrecked a brand new car two weeks after he got it. Tim was a good pianist and was particularly skilled at ragtime music. Tim and Tom and me and our sister Dianne all took piano lessons from the same teacher, Mrs. Longbons, and we used the same music. You would often see four names and dates written on each sheet of music we learned. I remember when Tim bought a porch swing for our parents; that’s how thoughtful he was. Tim‘s middle name is Ray and it comes from our uncle Ray Browder. I remember maybe 20 years ago when Tim and his family were visiting Illinois and decided to go over to Missouri to buy fireworks at Boomland. After their shopping was done and they were in the car to drive back to Illinois, Tim realized that he had left his wallet in the store. We were getting ready to get on the highway in two separate cars, Tim was driving the one behind me, and when I looked in the rearview mirror, I saw that he had stopped at the top of the highway entrance ramp and had gotten out of his car. He then proceeded to run down the hill and back towards Boomland but as he was running he stumbled and began tumbling down the hill. When I got back to the store, I found him breathless and relieved because he had recovered his wallet. I wished he had just waited for me or turned his car around and drove but that was Tim. When he realized something was wrong, he reacted out of of instinct and without thinking and just got out and began to run. I will always remember that funny sight of Tim rolling down the hill near Boomland. Tim was smart and a good game player. Above all else, he loved his family. I wish we could’ve spent more time together. I think it appropriate to say a few words about his faith.

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT
My brother, Tim Holderfield, was not a perfect man and he made some regrettable decisions. Before you don your judges robe and slam your gavel, please don’t be deceived - we’re all imperfect and full of sin. Fortunately, the God Tim worshipped, and I hope you worship, has a forgiving nature. Tim needed forgiveness, as we all do. Each of us has broken God’s rules - a lot - but God endlessly forgives us. He forgives us when we walk away, squander the gifts He’s given us, or when we hurt others. Tim understood that repentance leads to forgiveness. He also learned that we enjoy God's forgiveness more fully when we extend it to others, and enjoy it less when we hold on to regrets over past failures. Regrets haunted Tim and, if we are truthful, far too often we too live in that slimy muck of self-pity and let it rob our joy. Listen, Jesus died to redeem us from failures.

Tim struggled both physically and mentally and seemingly fell short of what he might have been; yet, thankfully, even when he fell short, his relationship with God remained intact. A groping and broken Tim is now entirely whole and walking in the light as a consequence of his faith in Jesus. If we can look at Tim’s life as an example of endurance and redemption and share his story with others similarly struggling then perhaps Tim’s life may not have fallen as short as one might believe at first glance. No, we can’t use Tim, or any of us, as a standard. God is our standard. When we remember that, we begin to realize just how far short we fall.

We need never wonder about whether God will forgive us when we truly repent; He always will. He will restore us to fellowship again and again. John the disciple puts it this way: Jesus comes alongside us providing assistance and intercession. Tim would want us to realize what he learned, which is that wrong choices, actions, and thoughts are forgivable. Tim needed to get out from under his burden of guilt and past disobedience and perhaps that’s the place you’re inhabiting. Admit your sins and confess them, regularly. You can count on God's forgiveness and complete cleansing when you intentionally seek Jesus.

Tim’s earthly journey has ended and, because of his faith in Jesus, he is now experiencing freedom, peace, joy, and rest far beyond what he could have conceived. Let us aim to shine God's truth and light through lives of service until that unclouded day when we, like Tim, worship with no tears before the Lamb.

Revelation 7:9-10,16-17
9 There before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. 10 And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.”

16 ‘Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them,’ nor any scorching heat. 17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; ‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’ ‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’”

OBITUARY
Timothy Ray Holderfield, 63, passed away on August 12, 2020 in Dallas, TX. He was the husband of Phillis Mae Holderfield. Five days earlier, on August 7, they marked 39 years of marriage together.

Born on March 10, 1957 in Marion, IL, he was the son of Robert Lee (Bob) and Shirley Jane Holderfield. He graduated from Marion High School in 1975 and in 1979 earned a Geology degree from Illinois State University in Normal, IL. He moved to Texas in 1981 and spent the majority of his career working for the City of Dallas where, among other things, he helped design the city’s 911 system.

He was a Christian man and grew up attending Warder Street Baptist Church in Marion, IL before attending various Methodist churches during his adult years in Texas. He enjoyed reading, playing games, and watching movies. You did not want to challenge him in a round of trivia. He will be remembered for his smile and love of family.

He is survived by his wife Phillis, children Robert Ellis (Mercel Ann), Lovina Jeanette (John), grandchildren Mila, Eli, John, and Jaxson, parents Bob and Shirley Holderfield, brothers Tom and Dan Holderfield, and sister Dianne Holderfield Noakes.

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Robert Holderfield

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Robert Holderfield

Thanks Uncle Danny Thanks Uncle Danny Thanks Uncle Danny

Dan Holderfield

Tim Holderfield and cousin Mike Langan

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Robert Holderfield

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Carolyn Michael Langan

I want to share a few words of remembrance to honor Tim’s memory, and to give his Texas family, in particular, some picture of Tim as I knew him. I don’t have one or two especially outstanding memories of Tim, but we grew up a year apart in age, in the same town, cousins in a very close-knit extended family, so he was an extremely frequent presence throughout all of my early years. Holidays, picnics, birthdays, sleep overs, fish fries, weddings, church activities, Boy Scouts, whatever was going on, we were there and hanging out together. By the time we were in high school, if I didn’t have a date on the weekend, it was a pretty safe bet that I’d be gone with Tim for a movie and pizza. When I was getting married, it seemed pretty natural to ask him to be my best man. The point I want to make is that although we didn’t keep close contact after he moved to Texas and we started families of our own, we were together a lot back then, and I feel like I knew Tim pretty well. So what are the qualities which best describe Tim for me? Probably first off, Tim was cheery. Not just cheerful, though he was that, but he spread cheer to others. He had a bright smile, dry wit, and wonderful sense of humor. Being around Tim was always comfortable and fun. Second, I think it was due to his humility and strong Christian upbringing, that he adhered so closely to the golden rule, persistently striving to treat others as he wanted to be treated. Tim knew all about empathy and inclusivity, long before they became buzz words. Finally, I firmly believe that at his core Tim was a decent, principled, loving man, who wanted very much to lead an upright life and do right by others. It’s hard for me to imagine the world without Tim in it, and I will always carry his memory fondly in my heart. My condolences to the family, and I pray God’s grace and peace to you all. Mike Langan

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