ST. GEORGE, Utah — Hundreds of mourners lined the streets of St. George on New Year's Day as Jeffrey R. Holland, a senior leader of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, was laid to rest in his hometown cemetery alongside his late wife Patricia.
Holland, who served as president of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, died Dec. 27 from kidney disease. Despite steady rain throughout the morning, community members gathered along a seven-block procession route on Tabernacle Street to pay their final respects.
"I almost felt like the heavens were crying a little bit for us because of our loss," Sharon Kendall said.
Many attendees referenced Holland's frequent quote about his connection to southern Utah: "the red sand of southern Utah never gets out of your shoes."
Greg Goldthorpe, who was a student at Brigham Young University when Holland was president there, remembered the partnership with his wife.
"He always stood at the podium with his wife, Pat," Goldthorpe said. "That made such an impression on what marriage could be like."
Patricia Holland died in 2023 from COVID-19. Kendall said Holland's openness about his own grief helped her process her losses.
"His words have always impacted me at a very deep level and so we just felt like it would be our privilege to be here," Kendall said. "He's always made an impact here."
For Derek Barney, Holland's influence was life-changing. Three decades ago, when Barney was struggling with drug addiction and had been arrested for robbing a pharmacy, Holland offered hope to his family.
"He told my mom not to worry about me because I would be okay. That everything would turn out okay for me," Barney said. "He told me I was going to be a good husband and father — which at the time I was not."
Now a therapist helping other addicts, Barney has been clean for 25 years. He said one of the last times he saw Holland, the church leader gave him a note.
"He actually wrote… 'Thanks for being a good husband and father,'" Barney said. "That has motivated me to live up to what he saw in me."
"This is his town," Goldthorpe said.
"Oh, he's kind of an icon for those of us that have been in St. George for a long time," Kendall said.
