Mary Alice (Taylor) Holder

Mary Alice (Taylor) Holder passed away peacefully, surrounded by family, at the age of 82 on Thursday morning, February 13, 2025 after a courageous battle with pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Mary was born in Cullowhee, NC, on December 2, 1942, to the late Claude Hamilton Taylor and Alice Alzora (Pressley) Taylor. Preceding her in death was a son, Stuart Andrew Holder, and a sister, Doris (Taylor) Hagan. She is survived by her husband of 65 years - Carlos Odell Holder; two sons - Chad Ashley Holder (and wife, Sonja Polic Holder) and Nathan Taylor Holder (and wife, M. Naomi Holder and her sons Maddox and Ryland); four grandchildren - Christopher Andrew Holder, Natalie Lillian (Holder) Bartholomew (and husband, Bryan Maxwell “Max” Bartholomew), Zachary Marko Holder, and Matthew Andrew Holder; two sisters, Annie Jo Scott and Christine Fisher; three brothers, Wayne Taylor (and wife, Vera), Terry Taylor (and wife, Carolyn), and E. Steven Taylor (and wife, Jan), as well as multiple nieces and nephews. All were blessed to receive her unbounded support, compassion, and love.

Mary Alice Taylor grew up in Cullowhee, N.C. where she attended McKee Laboratory School. In high school she was widely acclaimed by her teachers and classmates for her academic acumen, infectious personality, and went by “MAT” (her initials) by all that loved and adored her. She was very popular to ALL and to teammates on the Cullowhee basketball team. Throughout her life people gravitated toward her like metal to a magnet.

In her junior year of high school, she met her future husband Carlos, then a freshman at Western Carolina. Carlos walked into a grill next to campus one afternoon and couldn’t help but notice a beautiful girl sitting in a booth with her friends, smiling at him. He was hit with what Italians call "The Thunderbolt" and somehow knew Mary Alice was the "One" he would spend the rest of his life with.

Their courtship continued into her senior year when they decided to move to Winston-Salem, where he went immediately to work for RJ Reynolds and Mary immediately went to work for Hanes Hosiery, as serendipity interceded, and they both fortuitously met folks who occupied high administrative levels at each company.

Mary later received a computer programming degree from Forsyth Tech and after graduating, created programs for Dr. Kiffin Penry at Wake Forest Baptist. While at Forsyth Tech, she was taught by the same English teacher who was totally and surely responsible for Carlos going to Cullowhee where he ultimately met her - God's Hand at work.

Due to Mary’s prodding, Carlos attended Wake Forest part time for 5 years, while also working full-time, receiving a BBA degree and later an MBA degree. Her sacrifice allowed him to further his education. He fulfilled his promise to Mary, returning to working dayshifts as soon as he graduated from Wake, changing jobs to Wake Forest business office.

After leaving Wake Forest Baptist she worked at Sears as a department supervisor, then ultimately finished her professional career with US Air in 2005. While working for US Air she was able to develop lifelong friends and the job enabled them to travel to many Broadway plays, where “Les Miserables” became her favorite, prompting her to experience it more than once. She was able to fly with her aging parents and immediate family to Niagara Falls, NY and to Toronto, Canada. They had never flown before and it became the highlight of their lives. They continued to talk about that to family and friends for years to come.

In her later years, she bravely fought a battle with pancreatic cancer. For three plus years she was determined to live life to the fullest and was able to participate in and enjoy her son Nathan’s wedding and her granddaughter Natalie’s wedding.

There will be a viewing from 1:00-1:50 PM prior to the funeral service. A funeral service will be held at 2:00 PM on Saturday, February 22, 2025, at Hayworth-Miller Kinderton Chapel (108 E. Kinderton Way, Bermuda Run, NC 27006) with Dr. Paul Mullen officiating. Following the service, there will be a reception at WinMock at Kinderton (168 E. Kinderton Way, Bermuda Run, NC 27006). In lieu of flowers, Mary’s family encourages memorial donations to Tunnel To Towers Foundation, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital or the Novant Health Derrick L. Davis Cancer Center.