Holly Frederick Reynolds

Mrs. Holly Louise Frederick Reynolds died on October 11, 2022 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She was 103 years old. Holly was born in Lynchburg, VA and raised in Covington, LA. She was the only child of Mr. and Mrs. C. Sidney Frederick of a prominent pioneer St. Tammany Parish family. A graduate of Ursuline High School in New Orleans and Brenau College, Gainesville, GA, she received her Masters’ Degree from Louisiana State University in 1941 with a major in recreation. During World War II she volunteered for overseas service with the American Red Cross and was assigned to the European Theatre of Operations from 1943 until the end of the War in Europe in 1945. Her work with the 5th Infantry Division and her postwar interest in it motivated the Society of the 5th Division to name her as the only female member of that organization. She married a GI in England but was divorced on return to the States. In 1947, she organized the 1st public recreation program in Covington – summer activities for youngsters held in the Lyon High School gym. Her personal recreational activities included square dancing, golf, 6 snow-ski vacations, hand crafts and canasta. She worked 2 years as Activities Director for the New Orleans YWCA and then as Service Club Director at Keesler Air Force Base. She returned to Covington in 1953 to begin 20 years as Recreational Therapy Director at Southeast LA Hospital in Mandeville. During that time, she founded the St. Tammany Humane Society, which was then only the 4th such organization in Louisiana. In 1953 her involvement in animal welfare increased and spread to national as well as state and local activities. In 1973, her recreation work took her to East Louisiana State Hospital in Jackson, LA. After retiring from state service in 1977, Holly moved to Baton Rouge for the purpose of establishing a humane society, as the Baton Rouge SPCA had closed and she felt strongly the need for the Louisiana capital city to have one. This resulted in CAAWS, Capital Area Animal Welfare Society (1979) and was followed by COLAA, Coalition of Louisiana Animal Activists – a statewide group (1981). A particular concern of hers was improving state and national legislation for animal welfare and she was active in both for many decades. In 1997, she created and funded the Holly Frederick Reynolds Support Foundation for Animal Welfare to continue her work after her death. She was the oldest known living member to attend the 1st annual meeting of the Humane Society of the United States in Grand Rapids, MI in 1955, now the largest such organization in the country. In 2021, she was commended by Louisiana House Concurrent Resolution 29 of the Regular Session for her committed decades of animal rights advocacy. She was proud to have been a member of “the Greatest Generation.” A memorial gathering will be held at Rabenhorst Funeral Home, 825 Government Street, Baton Rouge on Thursday, October 20 starting at 9:00am until memorial services begin at 11:00am. A reception will be held at the funeral home immediately following the conclusion of services. Memorial donations may be made to the Holly Frederick Reynolds Support Foundation for Animal Welfare c/o Animal Welfare Institute, 900 Pennsylvania Ave SE, Washington, DC 20003 (www.awionline.org) or to the animal rescue organization of your choice. Rabenhorst Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.