Table of Contents
Ernest W Holz
Commissioner Ernest W Holz.
| Commissioner Ernest W Holz | |
|---|---|
| Rank | Commissioner |
| Birth Date | November 2, 1916 |
| Death Date | July 4, 2001 |
| Relations | Brigadier Ernest Holz (father) |
| Brigadier Keitha White Holz (mother) | |
| Commissioner Richard Holz (brother) | |
| Lt. Colonel David Holz (brother) | |
| Commissioner Richard E Holz (grandfather) | |
Appointments
| Appointment | Rank | From | Until |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cadet - College for Officers Training - Southern Territory | Cadet | 1938 | 1940 |
| Corps Officer - Atlanta, Georgia | |||
| Corps Officer - Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | |||
| Corps Officer - Louisville, Kentucky | |||
| Divisional Secretary - National-Capital Division | 1952 | 1957 | |
| Divisional Commander - National-Capital Division | 1961 | 1966 | |
| Territorial Commander - Southern Territory | |||
| National Commander - National Command | Commissioner | 1979 | 1981 |
Obituary
Ernest W. Holz, 84, a third generation Salvation Army officer who led the national-Capital division from 1961 to 1966, held other major positions and was national commander from 1979 until his retirement in 1981, died July 4 at a hospital in DeLand, Fla. He had pneumonia.
Cmdr. Holz, whose father was a commander in the Washington area in the late 1920s, grew up playing the bass drum in the Army's street marches.
He was a traditionalist who tried to maintain the “street warfare” aspect of the Army, including brass bands, evangelistic songs and Christian testimonies. “The Salvation Army hasn't lost its nerve,” he told The Washington Post in 1965. “We will go anywhere to present the Gospel to the unchurched.”
Those were the waning days of such endeavors, when city streets were becoming crowded with car traffic, malls were drawing people into the suburbs and television was competing for the public's attention.
Much of his energy was focused on several large expansion and construction projects for Salvation Army facilities in the District and its suburbs. He also enlarged the summer camping program.
His jobs included stints in San Francisco, where he was chief secretary for several western states, and in Atlanta as southern territorial commander.
As national commander, he oversaw the development of a national advisory board. Previously only local communities had advisory boards.
He helped plan, in 1980, the centennial celebrations for the U.S. branch of the Salvation Army. He also moved the headquarters from New York to Verona, N.J., as a cost-saving measure. The headquarters is now in Alexandria.
Ernest Waldemar Holz, a native of Pittston, Pa., attended Georgia State University. He was a graduate of what was the Salvation Army Staff College in England and received a commission from the organization's seminary in Atlanta in 1940.
His earliest postings included Atlanta, Oklahoma City and Louisville.
From 1952 to 1957, Cmdr. Holz was divisional secretary in Washington, the second in command. In 1953, he assisted rescue workers when a runaway locomotive smashed into Union Station.
At his death, he lived in Orange City, Fla.
He was married for 61 years to Emma Krunsberg “Mina” Holz, the Salvation Army's former national president of women's organizations, who died in 1990.
Survivors include two daughters, Salvation Army Lt. Col. Mary Jones of Alexandria and Christine Goodier of the U.S. Virgin Islands; two sons, Ernest R. Holz of Arlington and William H. Holz of Cape Carteret, N.C.; three brothers; three sisters; and five grandchildren.