When Richard Holder was a young boy two events occurred which would have a profound effect on the rest of his life.
At the age of ten Richard had a terribly sore throat. It was extremely painful and almost impossible for him to swallow. It was even becoming difficult for him to breath. His mother, Grace, called the Krohn Clinic. Dr. Johnson made a house call and gave him a shot of penicillin. The following morning, young Richard felt almost as good as new. At that very moment Richard decided he wanted to be a doctor, so he could help people the way Dr. Johnson had helped him.
A short time later, as Richard and his fellow 5th-graders enjoyed recess on the playground of Third Street Elementary school (now known as Union Place), he noticed a vehicle pull up to the curb. It was an older Model A with the rumble seat converted to make it similar to a small truck. Painted on the side of the vehicle were the words “Julius Schnur Plastering”. As Richard watched, a striking little girl with long, jet black hair jumped from the truck and ran to join the 3rd grade children. Dr. Holder remembers thinking, “she is the prettiest girl in the world”. That little girl would become a good friend of Richard’s all through school. In college their friendship would continue to grow and deepen. In 1955, two days after graduating from UW Madison, Joanne Schnur would become Mrs. Richard Holder. Dr. Holder shares his amazement and good fortune that Joanne chose him and accepted his proposal. That little black haired girl remains the love of his life to this day.
Following graduation, he with a medical degree and she with a degree in occupational therapy, both were required to do an internship. The newlyweds chose Michigan. Joanne accepted an internship offer from the elite Henry Ford Hospital. Michigan had a minimum wage law and Dr. Holder would be paid $200 a month, which at that time was a living wage. By comparison, interns at John Hopkins were paid $15 per month. Dr. Holder also wanted further training in trauma, and felt that opportunity would be available at Detroit Receiving Hospital (the city’s charity hospital). This certainly turned out to be true. In 1955 racial tension was increasing in Detroit as were gangs and gang violence. Dr. Holder administered to people suffering from gunshot and knife wounds, along with many other cases of physical violence, and severe accidents.
One year later, when their internships ended, Dr. Holder was immediately called to service. The Korean War had ended and
U.S. involvement in the war in Vietnam would not escalate until 1960, yet the army was in desperate need of doctors. All young doctors were drafted as soon as their educations were complete. Dr. and Mrs. Holder spent the next two years at Fort Jackson, South Carolina. Here their first child, Cathy, was born. During his time in the army, Dr. Holder was offered additional training in one of three fields; psychiatry, pediatrics, or radiology. He chose radiology.
In 1958, having fulfilled his obligation to the army, Dr. and Mrs. Holder had decisions to make about their future. Dr. Holder’s cousin was John Noble, a physician at Krohn Clinic. He persuaded Richard and Joanne to return to Black River Falls. Dr. Holder joined the Krohn Clinic practice. Richard and Joanne settled in, made their home, and raised their family. Dr. Richard Holder spent the next forty years, until his retirement in 1997, caring for the people of our area.
When talking about his career, Dr. Holder simply beams. He says he enjoyed every day of practicing medicine and in particular delivering babies. While he doesn’t have any idea how many babies he delivered, he has a twinkle in his eye as he says, “there were a lot”. Dr. Holder reminisces that when he began his practice, the doctors of Krohn Clinic covered all of the community’s needs.The Krohn Clinic doctors were the same doctors who attended to the people in the hospital, and the same people who handled emergencies. There were no ambulances and no EMT staff. When a patient needed transportation, the doctors would call one of the local funeral directors and the patient would be transported in a hearse.
Over the course of his career, the Krohn Clinic relied heavily on Dr. Holder’s expertise in the field of radiology. As the community and the clinic grew, Dr. Holder was a welcoming face to new doctors and helped them in any way he could. When
a doctor named Jerry Kitowski came to town in 1985, his office was directly across the hall from Dr. Holder. As Dr. Holder mentored the young Dr. Kitowski, their mutual respect and admiration developed into a strong friendship, despite the fact that Dr. Holder was known to play the occasional practical joke on his hall-mate. When speaking with Dr. Holder, it is easily apparent that his close bond, and on-going friendship, with Dr. Kitowski brings him tremendous joy.
Dr. Holder has always enjoyed gardening and the outdoors. He shares that had he not become a doctor, he would have been a farmer. Dr. Holder tells a story about how one year he tried his hand at raising 120 head of beef cattle. When asked how this worked out, Dr. Holder simply smiles and says, “it was a good thing I was getting a paycheck from the clinic”.
After Dr. Holder’s retirement in 1997, in addition to his gardening, he was able to enjoy hobbies that time had previously not allowed. He devoted many hours to woodworking. He and Joanne also spent time traveling. They went on several cruises to the Bahamas and the Mediterranean. They also visited England, where Dr. Holder’s father was born and raised, and Ireland, where his Grandfather grew up. During many of these trips, the Holders enjoyed the company of their very good friends, Dr. Marvin and Helen Hinke.
Dr. Holder smiles brightly as he shares how he met Marvin in medical school. They were in the same lab class and were informed lab partners would be assigned. Dr. Holder was desperately hoping to be assigned “some hot-shot from a big city on the east coast”, but fate intervened and the instructor assigned partners alphabetically. He became lab partners with Dr. Marvin Hinke from Stanley, Wisconsin. Dr.Holder chuckles as he says, “imagine my disappointment”. Later Marvin revealed he too had been hoping for a “big league” lab partner. Right then and there, sharing a laugh, they each found their life-long best friend. Dr. Holder enjoys telling the story of introducing his best friend to the woman who would become Marvin’s future wife. Helen Werner, of Black River Falls, was a good friend of Richard and Joanne. She came to Madison for a visit and Marvin was smitten. Several years later, Marvin and Helen would name their son Richard, to honor the man who had such an impact on their lives.
Several months ago, Dr. Holder and Joanne left their farm and moved to Spaulding Place. They appreciate their beautiful, sunny, new home filled with furniture Dr. Holder made, and enjoy co- operative living with their neighbors. Dr. Holder and Joanne are very proud of their wonderful family. Cathy, Dan, Sara and their families, all live within a few hours of Black River Falls. Mary Grace and her family live in Fayetteville, Arkansas, but are able to visit frequently. The Holders have been blessed with nine grandchildren. Dr. Holder and Joanne enjoy spending time with their family and friends and do so at every opportunity.
79 years ago two events would set the course of young Richard Holder’s life. Thank you Dr. Holder for reacting to those events in the way that you did. Thank you for coming home to raise your family and to fulfill your dream of helping others. You have touched the lives of an immeasurable number of people during your career. You have brought countless new lives into the world. You have comforted and held the hands of many as they left it. You have eased the pain, cured the problem, or simply been there for many, many others. Words simply cannot express how fortunate our community was to be blessed with such a kind, compassionate, and understanding man to care for us for more than forty years.
This year the KROHN CLINIC PHYSICIANS SCHOLARSHIP was given in honor of DR. RICHARD HOLDER and awarded to Laura Gulso. Laura graduated from Sparta High School in 1996. She has worked full time at Krohn Clinic since 2011 as well as per diem at Black River Memorial Hospital since 2016. Laura has an Associate degree in Nursing, having graduated from WTC
in 2010 with High Honors. Laura then worked at Tomah Memorial Hospital until starting at Krohn Clinic. Prior to beginning a career in nursing, she worked as a Certified Nursing Assistant at Pine View Care Center, a police dispatcher for the Wisconsin State Patrol, and she was active duty enlisted in the US Army from 1996-2002. Laura has been accepted into UW Madison’s ‘BSN at Home’ program, meant for non-traditional students. The program is anticipated to take two to three years to complete, attending part-time and almost entirely online. After that? Laura fully intends to stay right here in Jackson County and continue working at the Krohn Clinic and Black River Memorial Hospital. Congratulations Laura, we are certain you will make Dr. Holder proud!
If you would like to help a local student and recognize and honor Dr. Holder, or any other local medical professional, by donating to this fund, please make your check payable to BRFAF-Krohn Clinic Physicians Scholarship and mail it to the Foundation office.