Lee James Hollister

Lee was born on March 26, 1950, in Mankato, MN.  His parents were Bill and Katie Hollister.  Lee was their first child. He has 2 brothers, Keith, and Ross, and 2 sisters, Karol and Nancy. Lee was a good-natured kid growing up in Redwood Falls, MN with lots of friends and enjoyed many activities. His father, Bill, was a high school teacher and athletic coach which allowed Lee to have access to the school facilities and equipment almost any time he wanted.  He became a good basketball player, a fast pitcher in the summer little league and a shot put and discus thrower for the school team.  He also had a paper route for the far end of the town.  

Lee and his brother Keith ran a trap line and hunted rabbits and pheasants in the drainage ditch and fields that were within a mile from their home. Lee was a boy scout.  Though he didn’t attain the highest rank of eagle scout, he was a life scout and was a natural leader within the scout troop. He shared his skills with other members and was a good example for all. 

Fishing was his life calling.  He always seems to be successful when the others were just frustrated. In 1964 his dad became a Summer Ranger Naturalist in Glacier National Park. An older ranger saw Lee’s enthusiasm and took him to many “secret” places to catch trout. One season Lee and Keith were fishing for trout in the beaver ponds when they spotted a grizzly bear approaching them on a beaver dam. They grabbed the poles; Lee grabbed the stringer of trout, and they ran to the nearest trees. Lee left his pole on the ground but climbed the tree with fish in one hand. The bear sniffed his pole, looked up the tree and wandered off. There were other bear encounters on the trails but that was the most exciting.  

In 1967 Lee was offered a job driving the tour launch boat in Many Glaciers while the rangers gave the lecture to the tourist on the board. The next summer he was driving the boats and giving the lectures himself on the St. Mary’s Lake.  

Lee graduated from Centennial High School in 1968.  He then attended the University of Minnesota, Morris for about a year.  He felt he wasn’t quite ready for college, so he enlisted the US Army in 1969. He went through basic training at Fort Bragg, NC and was sent to Germany for about 18 months. He was a military policeman. Upon returning with an honorable discharge, he found a career in the trucking and shipping industry.  He became a Warehouse Distribution Manager. 

Lee met and married his first wife Colleen in 1973.  They had 3 children, Molly, Amy, and Carey.  Lee was an amazing father.  He spent a few years coaching basketball, and many, many years coaching softball. He supported everything his children did 100% and was always there to cheer them on.  He divorced Colleen and later moved to Mankato.  It was there where he met and married Debbie.  They had a sweet and loving relationship. They divorced after a few years but remained great friends and talked almost weekly until he passed away. Lee was blessed with 4 grandchildren, Aliyah, Aiden, Zayn, and Imani. 

Lee loved playing cards, throwing horseshoes, playing some cribbage with family. He was a huge sports fan, especially his beloved Vikings, even during the years they don’t play well.  Although he could recite to you any statistics of any football player of any team. That’s how much he loved the game.  He played fantasy football, and usually won because he just knew the players that well.   

Lee was an outdoorsman his entire life.  He was an avid hunter, and a good shot. He won awards during his years in the service for being an excellent marksman and he was very proud of that.  He hunted deer, goose, pheasant, even turkey. He liked the challenge of the birds the best.  He was a great fisherman and absolutely loved to fish.  He was talented at it too.  He would get bites on his line even when others would not.  Being on a boat just made him happy.  He fished up until his body just wouldn’t let him get on the boat anymore.   

Lee was blessed with the art of conversation. He could talk to anyone about anything and at any time.  He could walk into a room of strangers and by the end of the evening he would walk out with a room full of friends. He loved exchanging stories of life experiences of hunting, or fishing tales. He liked to hear about what people had going on in their lives, and exchange stories with them.  He was just a fun guy to talk to and be around. Lee was an amazing brother, father, grandfather, and friend.  He will be terribly missed by all.

Memorial Service for Lee will be held on Tuesday, November 14th from 3:00-5:00 pm at the Lino Lakes American Legion located at 7731 Lake Drive, Lino Lakes, MN 55014

Lee will be laid to rest at Fort Snelling National Cemetery with Cemetery Honors, on Wednesday, November 22nd at 10:00 am  at Assembly Area 4.