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Walt Holdren: Wheeling Originial, a Friend to All

Shawn Rine Staff Writer

WHEELING — Regardless of how old you are, embarking on a new endeavor is intimidating. The comfort zone no longer exists and you can feel as though you have just stepped onto an island inhabited by one — yourself.

Such was the case for me when I walked into WesBanco Arena for my first Wheeling Nailers practice. That was 11 years ago, but I remember thinking at the time that I may not last 11 minutes. Of course hockey was one of my favorite sports, but watching the game and reporting on it are two different things entirely.

So what does one do in these types of situations? Seek out the first friendly face you see. That person wasn’t hard to find, because he stood at the entrance to the ice and opened the door for each player. One by one they echoed some variety of ‘hey, Walt! How are you?’

‘Walt,’ as I soon discovered, was Walt Holdren. Perhaps discovered isn’t the correct term, since Walt walked up to me and introduced himself — immediately. As it turns out, that was a regular occurrence when someone walked into Walt’s ‘house.’

That was the beginning of an 11-year relationship. We shook hands each time we saw one another and emailed back and forth often. Heck, much to my amazement Walt even texted.

That friendship ended Tuesday, when Walt passed away at age 77. It was shocking to see the news, which after it sank in turned to sadness.

”Walt was a long-time supporter of the Nailers and one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet,” Nailers Vice President of Ticketing Chris Thoburn said. (He was) ”one of the original season-ticket members who has been with us for every season.

”We all loved when he would stop in the office and chat with us.

”All of us here at the Nailers are going to miss him and we offer our condolences to his family.”

They honestly don’t make them like Walt anymore. You could walk three city blocks and not make eye contact with a single person, let alone utter a word. Walt looked you in the eye and offered his hand on every meeting, no doubt a combination of his stellar upbringing and a stint in the military. No person was too big or too small in the eyes of Walt Holdren.

And of course, losing someone like that is extra difficult because there’s no way to replace them.

I last saw Walt prior to Game 4 of the Kelly Cup Finals. Running late following our daughters’ softball game and with opening faceoff quickly approaching, I had time for little else than a wave and a ‘Hi, Walt’ that he returned in kind. Looking back I wish somehow there would have been time for more.

From the day we met, Walt had a full head of gray hair and a beard to match. In a way he reminded me of Santa Claus. That seems kind of appropriate, since Walt Holdren gave me the ultimate gift — friendship.

The Nailers will be starting the 25th season of hockey in Wheeling before we know it. This will be the first without Walt and that will be difficult.

Here’s hoping he finally gets a chance to see a Kelly Cup raised while watching from above. Nobody deserves that more.

Rest in Peace, Walt Holdren.

Shawn Rine can be reached via email at: srine@theintelligencer.net

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