John Hollis, A Man of Great Merit
John Hollis was a force to be reckoned with; anyone who knew him could tell you that. His loss this week will reverberate in his hometown of Seaford, through southern Delaware and across the state.
His connection to the DCF was long and deep. John was very active in philanthropy across his career. He joined the DCF as its first Senior Vice President for Southern Delaware in 2002. During his tenure he helped to establish our first southern Delaware office at DelTech Community College. When we quickly outgrew it, he was instrumental in finding our long-term second home at 36 The Circle. (He used to say half-jokingly, that he was sure he’d be fired for buying such a ramshackle building, but it turned out to be a wonderful home for nearly 20 years.) During that era, he led the charge to raise the first $30 million in the region.
But John’s legacy with Delaware, and the DCF, is far deeper. After growing up in Seaford, he attended Wake Forest University. In this video John spoke about how his eyes were opened to racial discrimination, which fueled a passion to work to eliminate barriers.
After graduating, he returned to Seaford and as a young high school science teacher and coach helped to found an organization to do just that: MERIT, the Minority Engineering Regional Incentive Training.
Working with DuPont’s Nylon Plant in Seaford, MERIT began as a science club in three school districts. Over time it expanded into a full STEM program open to minority students across Sussex County. Designed initially for high school it grew to include middle school students. Students met after school and, John estimated, across 1,000 Saturday mornings.
MERIT recently celebrated its 50th anniversary – and the achievement of more than 600 of the students who came to the program earning bachelor’s degrees, with more than 50 of those reaching full Ph.Ds. John tells the story of MERIT in the video which the DCF created to honor him and the anniversary. (You can also read about it in our news release.)
John’s support of the park system led Delaware State Parks to name their endowment for children in nature, also at the DCF, after he and his wife: The John and Linda Hollis Endowment for Children in Nature.
John, with Linda, believed in the power of philanthropy, of education, and most of all, of kindness. He was instrumental in so many community projects at the southern end of the state, such as the building of a 40K-square-foot Western Sussex Boys & Girls Club at Hollis Park, and support of the Home of Hope, a 90-acre campus for women recovering from addiction and starting a new life, to name just two. He was very proud that he and Linda were honored with the Legacy Leadership Award by the Sussex Chamber of Commerce and the John Taylor Award from the Delaware State Chamber.
In a Q&A on the DCF website, John wrapped up his philosophy about philanthropy this way: “It’s not just a matter of finance. It’s a matter of heart.”
We will miss him greatly.