Nona Holmes

Nona Mae Holmes, age 100, of Cheyenne, Wyoming passed away peacefully on April 15, 2022 at the Davis Hospice Center with family and friends by her side.  Nona was born in Torrington, Wyoming on May 29, 1921 to Earl and Luella Zimmerman. She was one of six children and as a young child moved with her family to her parents’ homestead 20 miles north of Cheyenne.

Nona went to a country school as a child and graduated from Cheyenne High School in 1939. She went on to get her teachers certificate and soon had jobs teaching in one room schoolhouses.

A country social gathering is where Nona met her future husband, Harold William Holmes. In their youth they attended many barn dances, and throughout their marriage their love of dancing never faded.

On December 14, 1939, they were married. It was a cold snowy Cheyenne day, but they still enjoyed a carriage ride around Cheyenne after their wedding. It was the beginning of their exciting life together. Nona and Harold were married 71 years.

Being married to Harold meant a lifetime full of business ventures. First was a diaper and laundry service. They specialized in laundering servicemen’s uniforms from F.E. Warren Air Force Base. About this same time, Harold and Nona started Holmes Auction. It expanded over the years to selling furniture, appliances and carpet. Next was Holmes Boat and Camper Exchange where they built campers and trailers with a decal they put on each one that read “Holmes on Wheels.”

In 1969, when Nona and Harold were nearly 50 years old, a big change of careers occurred, when they jumped into the fast-food business with John and Bonnie Turner and Jim and Marion Woodson. Taco John’s is still in business today, nearly 53 years later.

Throughout Nona’s life she was an adventurer. She was Harold’s trusty map-reader in their airplanes and later in life as his RV navigator. They enjoyed traveling with friends in their RV club around the United States and even to Mexico. They also loved taking trips on their Honda Gold Wing with their Power Riders Club in Arizona. She loved to golf, watch the Colorado Rockies, support the Wyoming Cowboys and Cowgirls, and spend time at the family cabin at Horsetooth Reservoir and their home in Surprise, Arizona.

Nona worked alongside Harold in their businesses but their main focus was always their four children, eight grandchildren and 14 great- grandchildren. Times with family always included family game playing and undoubtedly a puzzle. Enjoying moments with them kept her smiling and forever young. In her last few years of life, she enjoyed time with each of her loving caregivers at her home in Cheyenne. Nona was blessed with an abundance of fortitude and an unbridled spirit to live life to its fullest.

Nona is survived by her children, Carolyn (Terry) O’Connor of Castle Rock, Colorado, Denny (Chris) Holmes of Highlands Ranch, Colorado, Sandy (Tony) Ross of Cheyenne and Kandy (Clayton) Hartman of Fort Collins, Colorado; grandchildren, Kelley (Don) Digby, Brandy (Lindsay) O’Connor, Kathleen Holmes (Jon Whitney), Nicholas (Leah) Holmes, Haley (Payden) Stramel, Cameron Ross, Morgan (Kevin) Whalen and Keaton (Brett) Brockman; 14 great-grandchildren, Trey and Reagan Digby, Jackson and Rylee O’Connor, Wyatt and Wagner Whitney, Payson and Palmer Holmes, McCoy, Charlie and Hayes Stramel, Emmett and Carsen Whalen and Blakely Brockman; as well as many beloved nieces, nephews and their families.

She was preceded in death by her parents; five siblings; great-grandson, Sutton Stramel; and her loving husband, Harold.

A celebration of Nona’s life will be held Wednesday, April 27, 2022 at 2:00 p.m. at Cheyenne Hills Church, 7505 Lincoln Highway, Cheyenne, Wyoming 82001. Honorary pallbearers will be her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Nona Holmes’ name to Climb Wyoming, Children’s Hospital Colorado or Tunnels to Towers.

Services are under the care of Schrader, Aragon and Jacoby Funeral Home, 2222 Russell Avenue, Cheyenne, Wyoming 82001.