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Vance Leslie Holley Jr. ‘Bud,’ 74

Vance Leslie Holley Jr., “Bud,” was born March 3, 1942, to Vance L. Holley and wife Mary Belle Brown Holley in Gary, Ind. His parents moved to China Lake, Calif., in 1945 — at that time called Naval Ordinance Test Station — and attended schools in the area from K-12, graduating in 1960 from Sherman E. Burroughs High School.

He joined the U.S. Navy in 1961 and served onboard an aircraft carrier, a destroyer, a cruiser and a nuclear cruiser, plus various duty stations in the U.S. from Boston to San Francisco, Vietnam and the Philippines. He was promoted to Electronics Technician Chief on Dec. 16, 1977, and “retired” from the Navy in 1981.

Bud believed in the importance of an education, taking classes at every duty station from the local colleges and, in June 1981, received a B.A. degree followed by a M.S. in 1993.

He met Ritarae (Rita) Harris in 1963 while home on leave and they married in July 1964. They were happily married for 52 years, being true soul mates, and were blessed with two sons — Michael Vance Holley in 1967 born at Chelsea Naval Hospital in Chelsea, Mass.; and Scott Raymond Holley in 1969 born at Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines.

Bud went to work for United Gas Pipeline in Houston, Texas, after the service for five years before relocating to California and being hired by Northrop. Bud retired a second time in 1999 from Northrop Grumman after having worked for them for 11 years and working on the B-2 Bomber — the flying wing — starting when it was still a “black” project. When he came home from that interview, Rita asked what he would be working on and he said that he didn’t have a clue. It was still a secret project. He worked as a contract defense contractor working short-term jobs up and down the state of California before finally retiring in 2003.

He was witness and participant to many wonderful events and traveled to many countries. He saw the space shuttle landing at night at Edwards AFB, worked on the B-2 bomber, was a golden shellback when crossing the equator. His whole life revolved among the military and it is fitting that he was interred at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Va., on May 2, 2017.

While in the U.S. Navy stationed in Vung Tao, Vietnam, in 1970, he was exposed to Agent Orange — a defoliant sprayed by air used to control jungle growth — and in 2008 was diagnosed with leukemia and lymphoma — a direct result of the product. Agent Orange was stored in huge black containers and simply had an orange ring around on the containers for identification — therefore, the name, Agent Orange.

He fought the good fight, but lost the battle on Dec. 16, 2016, at Hospice House in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, with Rita by his side. He went to be in God’s arms and to join his parents and younger son, Scott that evening.

He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Rita; son Michael; daughters-in-law Misti and Elizabeth; three granddaughters, Natalie, Abbey and Sarah; cousins and many, many friends.

A memorial celebration will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, July 1, 2017, at Yates Funeral Home, Coeur d’Alene Chapel, 744 N. Fourth St., Coeur d’Alene. His friends and relatives meant the world to him and after the service we will have a reception with lunch.

In lieu of flowers, the family would like to suggest donations be made in Bud’s name to Hospice of North Idaho, 9493 N. Government Way, Hayden, ID 83835; or Shriners Hospitals for Children, 2900 Rocky Point Drive, Tampa, FL 33607 (www.shrinershospitalsforchildren.org).

Yates Funeral Home is entrusted with the care of final arrangements. Please visit Bud’s online memorial and sign his guest book at www.yatesfuneralhomes.com.