Lewis Holland Sr.

(1936 – 2011)

Lewis Holland Sr. was a native of Atlanta and a graduate of the University of North Carolina. Holland joined the Robinson-Humphrey Company as the senior vice president in 1963. He then worked as senior vice president of UBS AG (formerly Paine Webber Inc. and Kidder Peabody & Co, Inc.) and then president of Central Atlanta Progress in 1991.

In 1993, Holland joined a commission that supported the exterior lighting of downtown buildings. The successful campaign resulted in the lighting of 52 buildings the week of the 1994 Super Bowl, and several more exterior lighting projects were added before the Olympics in 1996. “He helped light up Atlanta,” his brother Jack Holland said, “and that was a big deal at the time.” Inspired by his older brother, Holland’s mission in life was to leave Atlanta better than he found it. Holland spent a great deal of time giving his personal attention to the issues that plagued the city’s children and homeless population.

He was chairman of Leadership Atlanta, Youth Villages (formerly Inner Harbor) and Cities and Schools, served on the boards of the Wesley Woods Foundation, The Temple, Youth Villages, Cities and Schools, and the Atlanta Boys and Girls Club. He also served on the 1996 Olympic Committee and the Atlanta World Cup Soccer Bid Committee in 1990. He married Kay Robinson Holland and had three children.