Scott Holder

Funeral services for Scott Franklin Holder, 42, of Fairview will be 10:30 a.m., Thursday, August 27, 2015 at the Fairview First United Methodist Church with burial to follow at the Fairview Cemetery. Reverend Ronnie Hopkins will officiate. Arrangements are by Fairview Funeral Home Inc.

Scott Franklin Holder was born March 7, 1973, to Richard and Joyce (Mayo) Holder in Ponca City, Oklahoma. Scott died Friday, August 21, 2015, in Fairview, Oklahoma, where he lived with his wife Heather (Chase) Holder, daughter Brinley Christine, and son Silas James.

Scott and his older brother Lonnie Wayne Holder were raised in Buffalo, Oklahoma, where their family moved in 1974 to operate the Western Auto Hardware store and later a heating and air conditioning business. Scott graduated from Buffalo High School in 1991. It was in Buffalo that Scott’s love of the outdoors and his penchant for making people laugh flourished. He was elected “Most Humorous” by his classmates during his junior year, and also “Class Favorite” and “Class Comedian” his senior year. He also rose to the rank of Eagle Scout, that organization’s highest achievement, through Buffalo’s Boy Scout Troop 276.

At 6’ 5” tall, Scott’s size belied his gentle nature, but made him invaluable to the high school football team. He played both his junior and senior year. An accomplished student, he was also elected to the Principal’s Honor Roll all four years of high school. Scott attended the University of Oklahoma for two years after graduation before venturing out into the world to try his hand at welding. Scott eventually moved back to Buffalo to help his ailing father in his battle with lung cancer, working with him in his heating and air conditioning business. Scott’s father passed away in December 1999.

Scott started dating the love of his life, Heather Christine Chase, in June 1999. They were married in Buffalo on November 16, 2001. Scott worked in manufacturing for a time, but a desire to improve his family’s fortunes spurred him to return to college. Scott worked diligently to gain admission to Southwestern Oklahoma State University’s Pharmacy program and eventually graduated with his Doctor of Pharmacy degree in 2008. Soon thereafter, Scott and Heather moved to Fairview where he became the owner of Fairview Pharmacy on Nov. 18, 2008. Scott touched many lives in Fairview, becoming a friend to many through his job and his involvement with community activities. Scott served on the Fairview Chamber of Commerce board, hospital outreach committee, and was also a member of the Lion’s Club.

Scott’s crowning achievement was the birth of his two children. Brinley was born on March 14, 2012. The very definition of “Daddy’s girl,” she soon had him wrapped around her little finger. A little more than two years later, the family grew by one more with the birth of son Silas on Sept. 18, 2014. Heather loved Scott even more for the wonderful Father he became to their kids, helping with changing diapers, giving baths, reading them stories and getting them to bed. With Scott’s blessing, the family invited Heather’s brother John McManus into their home in 2014, adding a specially built bedroom into their new house southeast of Fairview.

Scott’s love of the outdoors never faded. He continued hunting, fishing and camping up until the time of his passing. Scott kept a framed quote from Henry David Thoreau’s “Walden” by his bedside: “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately…I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life.”

Some of the greatest times of his life were spent on camping trips with his childhood friends into the wilds of Colorado. But Scott continued to make friends throughout his life. Much like fellow Oklahoman Will Rogers, Scott never met a man he didn’t like. One of his most endearing qualities was the unselfish giving of his time to others. A skilled carpenter and mechanic, Scott was always willing to either build or repair something to help somebody out. It was those remarkable abilities that kept him busy throughout most of his waking hours. Heather often remarked that Scott had spoiled her, because if something needed fixed, she knew Scott could do it.

Scott was preceded in death by his father, Richard Holder, his brother Gregory Holder, and both sets of grandparents.

Scott is survived by his loving wife of nearly 15 years, Heather Holder, daughter Brinley Christine and son Silas James, all of Fairview; mother Joyce Holder, brother Lonnie and wife Katrina, all of Rock Hill, South Carolina; mother-in-law Virginia Chase of Fairview; father-in-law Paul Chase and wife Bobbie of Buffalo; Uncle Dennis Holder and wife Tammy of Ninnekah, Oklahoma; and brother-in-law John McManus of the home in Fairview.

Memorials may be made to the Scott Holder Memorial Fund for his children with Fairview Funeral Home acting as custodians