We'll Miss You Cousin Tim

Cossacks, Clowns, Dancers,
Trapezers, Daredevils, All-
We will all miss Tim.

Our family recently had some sad news. My mom's cousin, Tim Holst, passed away while talent scouting in Brazil. He was a long time employee of Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus. While I didn't have too many memories with Cousin Tim, I did have a special memory of hanging out with him at a family reunion in Lava Hot Springs, ID. Those were a few magical days where he treated a few of us cousins to a good time. I think that is what I most remember about him, how generous he was. In fact, this past Oct. when the circus was in Salt Lake City, Tim organized a huge party for the family members in the area. We had a decorated Suite with a luncheon, and the circus clowns did a meet and greet and pre-performance for us. Not only that, but we all had tickets for the show, and the seats were really good. It was an awesome time, and we always get excited when Tim and the Circus come to town. We are surely going to miss him. Glenn Collins wrote an article about Tim in The New York Times, if anyone wants to read more about him click the link.








The Obituary:

Timothy J. Holst
Oct. 9, 1947 - April 16, 2009

Timothy J. Holst of Sarasota died April 16, 2009.
A public memorial service is scheduled from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday at the Hyatt Regency-Sarasota, 1000 Boulevard of the Arts, Sarasota. A public viewing will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. at Farley Funeral Home, Venice Chapel. A private funeral service for his family and LDS community will be held on Monday in Sarasota.
Interment will follow in the Venice Memorial Gardens in the "Garden of the Cross" area.
Timothy J. Holst died April 16 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Born on Oct. 9, 1947, in Galesburg, Ill., the second son of Francis Paul and Constance Lindbloom Holst, Tim Holst graduated from high school there in 1965. He studied as a drama major at Ricks College (Brigham Young University-Idaho), where he won honors for leadership and acting while earning an associate degree.
Serving as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Holst spent the next two and a half years in the Stockholm, Sweden, Mission.
In 1969, Holst resumed his studies as a theater major at Utah State University (USU) in Logan, Utah. While earning acclaim for major roles performing at a summer playhouse, Holst was encouraged to apply for admission to the famed Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Clown College in Venice.
Following graduation and a successful audition, Holst began his long 37-year love affair with the circus as a performing clown, singing ringmaster, performance director, production coordinator and, most recently, vice president of talent and production for all circus productions of Feld Entertainment, the show's owner, a position he held at the time of his death.
It was a personal source of pride that he ultimately earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts from USU. A lifelong member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Holst was currently serving as executive secretary of the Lakewood Ranch Ward in Sarasota.
A beloved father, grandfather, brother, uncle and friend, Tim is loved and missed by so many.
Holst was preceded in death by his parents, Francis and Constance Holst.
He is survived by his three children, Megan Holst of Marblehead, Mass., Adrienne Holst of Dallas and Matthew Holst of Dallas; brother Thomas (Holly) Holst of Luanda, Angola; sister Sandra Cordon of Salt Lake City; nephew Paul Cordon of Miami; and grandson Benjamin Holst of Marblehead.