Our friend Chic Hollis died unexpectedly on January 12, a very sad loss for his lovely wife Gisela and family, and just as sad for Chic’s NewsBlaze family.
We are missing him very much, but his musings will live on in NewsBlaze forever.
The Internet is an amazing phenomenon that brings people together in unexpected ways.
In April 2010, it was our good fortune to have Chic Hollis find NewsBlaze. We had published one of his “musings” and he wrote to us about the possibility of contributing more.
Newsblaze editor, Judyth Piazza had this to say about Chic, “I first met Chic as an editor for Newsblaze.com but as we got to know one another better, we traded stories about each other’s lives and future plans and it became very clear that in many ways I was following a trail that Chic had already blazed for me. Whether it be secret Air Force bases in Turkey or desert adventures in faraway lands, Chic and I were kindred spirits in different times being guided by the same light.
“I am devastated to hear about Chic’s death. Chic had been helping me as of late with achieving some of my most important goals and dreams. Chic had became way more than a friend to me, he was a mentor and a father figure. Chic was that beacon of light that kept me honest in the dirty world of journalism.
We chatted every morning for months on Yahoo Messenger….I miss him sooo much. He gave me the motivation I needed to tackle my day and the best business advice that I have ever received. I encouraged him to continue writing because it inspired me and many others. I am so very sad….I just can’t believe it.
Recently, there has been talk that the Internet causes a disconnect in society. For me, this is not true. The Internet has helped me develop friendships and forge bonds that will last a lifetime. Even though I never got the chance to meet Chic in person, his words I will never forget.”
“I have been a drummer for 70 years and a motorcyclist for 64. I was principal drummer with the University of Michigan Bands for three years and student business manager of the bands for two.
When I was a member of the U of M Bands, the Symphony Band played in Carnegie Hall in NYC, Boston’s Symphony Hall, and Philadelphia’s Academy of Music. I won the General Electric Scholarship granted by the School of Business Administration for being first in my class. I later played drums for amateur Broadway shows in Argentina and Brazil.
Upon graduation I served two years as an officer in the Air Force in North Africa as Chief of Officer Personnel in the 17 Air Force Hqs. The Hqs. were first located in Morocco and then in Libya. I have worked for General Electric, Chrysler, Volkswagen, and Bendix (now Honeywell.) My assignments for Chrysler included Director of Finance in Venezuela, in Argentina, in Brazil, Deputy Managing Director in Spain, and Managing Director in Argentina. When Chrysler’s Argentine subsidiary was sold to Volkswagen, I was offered and accepted a 3 year contract to be head of Volkswagen Argentina. I lived overseas 16 years and supervised foreign subsidiaries another 6.
I returned to the US in 1983 and became Group Vice President for Latin America of Bendix Automotive responsible for factories located in Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina. I retired from Bendix in 1988 and in 1992 became COO of a California retail property management company which managed 38 shopping centers and malls in California.
I have been married 4 times and have 5 children born in 5 different countries on four continents. I consider myself a politically independent citizen of the world interested in helping Americans understand the reality that is life overseas where many intelligent, educated, and industrious people aren’t as privileged as we are in the US.
I’ve studied Latin and Greek in high school, Russian at Michigan, and French, Spanish, Portuguese, and German during my working assignments.
Attached is a musing I recently wrote which gives you some idea of my current thinking. Since I am not familiar with your editorial philosophy, my writings may not be what you are looking for today. Nevertheless, I feel honored that you have already published one of my musings.”
We miss you, Chic Hollis.
Chic’s first published musing at Newsblaze, “What is a ‘Death Council?’ How Does It Function?”
Needless to say, we loved everything Chic wrote. We were honored that he shared his time, thoughts, energy and wisdom with us, and we all miss him very much. Thankfully, we have all his musings and his photo to remember him.
To read more of Chic’s musings: http://newsblaze.com/writer/holl.html
