James Eric Holder

James Eric Holder

November 23, 1966 - April 22, 2026

Eric was born in Winston Salem, NC to James William Holder Jr. and the late Mary Beth Mabry. He spent the majority of his childhood raised in Surfside Beach, South Carolina. In addition to his mother, he is preceded in death by his step-mother, Diane Holder, his niece, Mariah

Lawrence, and sister-in-law Jacqueline Holder. Eric is survived by his five siblings, Jody Holder, Scott Holder, Alison Gizzi, Rick Lawrence, and Crickett Vincent. He is also survived by his step-father, P.L. Mabry, who cared for Eric and loved him deeply.

Eric was always a hard-working man, even starting his first job at 12 years old. He washed dishes for a local seafood restaurant and also made doughnuts early in the morning before school began at Dave’s Doughnuts. By the time Eric was 15 he began driving the school bus in the morning and afternoon, taking his own classmates to and from school.

Eric moved to South Charlotte halfway through his high-school years, where he then graduated from Olympic High School in 1985. His passionate spirit and head strong personality then lead him to his love for golf. After finishing his Associates degree in Recreational Grounds

Management in 1987, he became an Assistant Golf Professional at Cedar Rock Country Club in Lenoir, NC. It was shortly after moving to Lenoir that he met Lori Holder, and became a father to his 2 children, Lindsay Avila and Ethan Holder.

Eric was a PGA professional golfer for 20 years and served as the PGA Head Professional at Lenoir Golf Club from 2008-2014. Other than being a skilled golfer, Eric took on many other professions, having jobs in construction, selling stocks and bonds, selling cars for Cars Plus in

Lenoir, and working in the food industry as the Director of Food Services at Caldwell Memorial Hospital for numerous years. Eric was a man that God gifted with many talents that he constantly used to improve the community around him. Eric loved growing gardens in his back yard so that he could can home-grown foods and also have quality food to cook with. Cooking became one of his many passions, along with bee-keeping, pottery, and baking.

Eric started turning pottery in 2006, and it later turned into a business, fueled by his motivation and wife of 9 years, Theresa Holder. Eric and Theresa sold his award-winning pottery at multiple festivals along the Western side of North Carolina. Eric’s pottery booth was awarded 1st place in the juried division at Festival in the Park in Charlotte, NC. Individual pottery pieces have received separate awards and recognitions over the years as well.

When Eric was not occupied with the task at hand, he loved spending quality time with his family and friends. Eric was a wonderful father to his 2 children, teaching them not to “sweat the small stuff, because in the end…it’s just small stuff.” He was also very welcoming to his new role as a step-father to Theresa’s 2 daughters and 2 sons, especially Josh. Eric cared for Josh as if he had known him since birth. Eric is survived by not only his children but also by his 2 grandsons, Jesse Boone and Easton James, and his granddaughter, Sofia Isabella, who he adored and was extremely grateful for.

Eric was a man that enjoyed the simple things in life. It didn’t take much to make him happy. He had a positive outlook that kept him motivated even when life seemed to test his limits. Eric wanted to be remembered as “the fun guy” that liked to take on new adventures and have a great time, not for how sick he was in the last few years of his life. With that being said, he requested that friends and family attending his funeral service have colorful and vibrant attire, not all black. Service location and time are both shown below…

Service Details:

Location: Chapel of Rest, Happy Valley, NC

Receiving form 1:00pm-1:45pm and Memorial Service to follow at 2:00pm