Ron Holland

Ron Holland died at his home outside Monterey, Kentucky, on Monday, August 24, 2026, with family members by his side and friends nearby. Born outside San Francisco, California, on May 18, 1945, Ronald Dennis Holland would spend his earliest years near Old Orchard Beach, Maine, then move with his mother, Mary Taylor Scee Engelke, to Watertown, New York. Losing contact with his father, Frank Holland, due to war-time conditions and a birth certificate snafu, Mary would remarry, and Ron would eventually help raise his three younger sisters, Juanita Louise Scee (Peter) Washer, Donna Marie Scee (Wendell) Waldroff, and Trudy Irene Scee, although he himself was then just a youth. To his sisters and family, Ron was simply “Bub.” He retained that title to the end of his days. Near the close of his life, after Ron retired and the birth certificate issue was resolved, Ron’s father’s family located him after many years of trying to do so, and Ron would visit his father and meet his family in Wisconsin.

Ron loved family and friends, nature, birds, dogs, photography, reading, and music, and all were part of his early and his final days.

After becoming one of New York’s youngest Eagle Scouts ever and graduating from Watertown High School, Ron attended the University of Buffalo, where he made lifelong friends, including with Scott Mello. He went on various adventures with Scott, and during this era he also hiked and climbed mountains in the Rockies and the Appalachians, and attended Woodstock. He marched in anti-war protests and in favor of civil rights. He photographed New York City with his friend Nick English, and photographed events and his travels west.

In the 1970s, Ron and his first wife Charlotte purchased a hundred acres outside Monterey, Kentucky, and over time Ron built a few homes there, the first of which he would eventually sell to his friend Nick, who had since moved to Kentucky, as had Scott. Ron then built a second home on the property, a house in which he lived for the rest of his life and which he designed to be unique amongst homes. In addition to these, Ron erected a large elevated dance floor, where he would hold parties open to the community. The structures he built speak to Ron’s mathematical and artistic qualities, as well as his many construction skills.

Ron and Charlotte would have two sons, Joshua John and Jonathan Daniel. Joshua was born at the couple’s first home in Kentucky, Jonathan at the second. By this time, Ron was working for the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and eventually became an Assistant Commissioner and a Commissioner of Unemployment and Workers' Compensation. Ron was very involved in state politics during these years, continuing a lifelong dedication to social issues, and he ran more than one gubernatorial campaign.

Ron’s two sons would have children of their own, Jade being the daughter of Jonathon Holland, and Dalton, Mirei, Julian, and Johnny being the children of Major, USAF, Joshua Holland. A few months before Ron’s death, Dalton gave him his first great-grandson, Dean. Ron would remarry after he and Charlotte divorced, first to Victoria White and then to Kay Hudson, and later have a long-term relationship with Rebekka Seigel, who would predecease him. Brady Hudson as well as Max and Nellie Seigel would become Ron’s “stepchildren,” for although they were not necessarily children at the time, they became children of his heart.

Making lifelong connections was one of Ron’s fortes, keeping contact with his friends from as far back as his youth in Watertown. Ron had numerous friendships that lasted for decades, while others were of shorter duration, but still of great consequence to him. He loved his community, and his community gave back to him in numerous ways.

Ron is survived by his sons, his grandchildren, and a great-grandchild, as well as by his sisters and their children, being especially close to his niece Mariah Scee, and a wealth of people who called him a friend. As a friend, a brother, a father, a grandfather, and a great-grandfather, Ron Holland will be missed.