Kern County CA Obituary Project Obituaries..... Holmes, William Lawrence October 16 2004 ********************************************************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/obits/obitsca/obitsca.htm ********************************************************** File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: K T bluewolf@onemain.com October 24, 2004, 11:52 pm The Bakersfield Californian William Lawrence Holmes Nov. 24, 1923 Oct. 16, 2004 Visitation for William Lawrence Holmes will be held at Basham Funeral Care 3312 Niles St.) on Monday evening, October 25, 2004 from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m., and Mass of the Christian Burial will be held at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church on Tuesday morning october 26 at 10:30 a.m. Interment will follow at Hillcrest Memorial Park. William Lawrence Holmes was born in Brea, California on November 24, 1923 to Lawrence Augustus Holmes and Margaret Catherine (McCusker) Holmes and he passed away on Saturday, October 16, 2004, in Bakersfield. He is preceded in death by his wife of 49 years, Virginia E. Holmes (Gaus), his parents and his brother, John Holmes. He is survived by his son and daughter-in-law, Brian and Barbara Holmes of Bakersfield; son and daughter-in- law, Timothy and Loretta Holmes of Ellicott City, Maryland; daughter and son- in-law, Denise and Norman DePeugh of Riverside, CA; 9 grandchildren, Chris Wilson and his wife, Stacey, Stephan Wilson, Carrie Wilson, Lonia Wilson, Taylor Holmes, Sara Holmes, Tonya Thomas and her husband, Craig, Cort DePeugh and Travis DePeugh; 3 great-grandchildren; sister-in-law, Ruth Holmes of Phoenix, Arizona and numerous other relatives and friends. William graduated from the University of California-Berkeley in the 1940s with a Bachelors Degree in Mechanical Engineering. During this time, he enlisted in the Navy and graduated from Officers Training School. Following WWII, he was employed as a petroleum engineer with Mobil Oil which he subsequently left to pursue self-employment as a consulting engineer. He met his future wife, Virginia, around 1950 in Los Angeles, and they were wed in 1952. Their first child, Denise was born in 1954, and sons, Timothy in 1958 and Brian in 1959, respectively. The early years of their marriage were spent in the Taft area. They subsequently settled in Bakersfield, where they spent the rest of their lives. William was a passionate fan of big band music including the works of Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Jimmy Dorsey and Benny Goodman. His strong interest in basketball throughout his adult life was a byproduct of his being a standout high school basketball player in his youth. He was a devoted Catholic who actively attended daily Mass at St. Josephs and Our Lady of Guadalupe churches. He had a kind heart for those less fortunate than he was and he was always one to provide a smile and a kind word for the people he met during his day. William loved giving out Lifesavers with a verse that read Smiles are very contagious, like relay batons they should be passed on to others. William will be greatly missed by all that knew him. The family would like to thank the staff at Pleasant Care, CBCC, Dr. Patel and the Hospice staff. A big Thanks to Drs. Hua Linn, Patel, Desai, Vega, Rahimifar and Devasia; Memorial Hospital, Hall Ambulance, Tri-County Transport. A Special Thanks to his special friend Dr. Susan Luu, M.D. For additional service information, contact Basham Funeral Care 873-8200. Basham Funeral Care Additional Comments: Volunteer submission - No relation to deceased. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ca/kern/obits/gob2228holmes.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/caobfiles/ File size: 3.8 Kb