Photo: AP via Ed Smith and family of Geoffrey Holt.
Almost no one knew this unassuming man was investing — until his small New Hampshire town got a large bequest.
In today’s story, a quiet man, known locally as a groundskeeper for a trailer park, rises to prominence in a way that would have totally embarrassed him.
Saleen Martin has the story at USA Today. “Community members knew the late Geoffrey Holt to be a reserved man who liked simple things. What most people didn’t know is that he was sitting on a $3.8 million fortune. Holt died on June 6, leaving millions to his beloved town of Hinsdale, New Hampshire. ..
“Hinsdale Town Administrator Kathryn Lynch said Edwin ‘Smokey’ Smith is Holt’s estate executor. He told town administrators about Holt’s generous donation a few months ago. …
“ ‘The town and other community committees can apply annually for a grant of $150,000 to be used for health, education, culture or recreation,’ she told USA TODAY in an email. … The town is considering using the money for electronic ballot machines since Holt was ‘an avid voter.’ …
“The main thing, she said, is that they want to honor how frugal Holt was and find ways to help people in Hinsdale save money through the town budget.
“Smokey Smith [and Holt] met when Smith ran an insurance company. … ‘He was very reserved,’ Smith said. ‘He liked to be at the back of a group rather than in the front. He got along well with people, but he didn’t want to be the one leading the conversation. If he knew what was going on today with this story … he would be all sorts of embarrassed.’ …
“Holt worked for Agway Corporation in the 1970s. According to his obituary, he was a production manager with the company. When they closed in the 1980s, he received a cash settlement that he chose to invest.
“He also did odd jobs around town when Agway closed. Smith eventually hired him to do some work on his land. … Smith said Holt eventually moved into an apartment he owned and then, a mobile home that he shared with a woman named Thelma Parker. … She died in 2017.
“ ‘She was good for him and he was good for her,’ Smith said. … ‘She helped him be a little more social. They were a good fit. She was the inspiration he needed to keep moving and she had somebody around to help her.’ …
“He had a car when he worked at Agway but sold it. … What Holt seemed to really love was his lawn mower. He’d ride around Smith’s property with his bad leg elevated on the hood of the vehicle, his friend recalled. … ‘He had several places where he trimmed back the brush so that he could sit down there and read magazines, newspapers, just put his foot up and enjoy the brook and nature.’ …
“Holt spent many years in preparatory school when he was younger. … ‘That’s where he learned that if you stay in the background, you stay out of trouble,’ Smith said. … In 1963, he graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Marlboro College in Vermont and then served in the United States Navy, his obituary reads.
“He later earned a master’s degree from American International College in Massachusetts in 1968 and then taught social studies and drivers’ education at Thayer High School in Winchester, New Hampshire.
“Smith recalls the day Holt told him about his fortune. It was about 13 years ago. He said his investments had done better than he expected.”
More at USA Today, here.
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