JACKSON - Everyone who knew Bill Holda remembers one thing: his joy of living.

Holda spent 17 years in Wyoming working in various positions, including acting chief ranger in Grand Teton National Park.

Holda was the "kind of person who can always find the sunny side of life - the glass was always half full," said his wife, Cyndy. "He was a positive energy force who touched many people's lives in a positive way."

Holda died Dec. 26 in his new home of Manns Harbor, N.C. He was 59.

He grew up in Chicago, and after working several odd jobs, knew he wanted "something different with his life," Cyndy said. He was drafted to Vietnam, which served as a turning point in his life.

After fighting in the jungles for two years, Holda returned to this country and knew "it was a great country. He served his country well, and everything else was icing on the cake," Cyndy said.

He was already a jovial person, but his experience in Vietnam made him even more appreciate the good things in life, she said.

Holda went to work for the National Park Service as a ranger in Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, near his Chicago home. There, he met Cyndy, a dispatcher. The two were married in 1980.

From there, the couple moved to various Park Service jobs, including work in Virginia, North Carolina and Oregon.

In the late 1980s, the two went to a "ranger rendezvous" in Grand Teton and "fell in love with the place," Cyndy said.

Holda accepted a position as the subdistrict ranger for the Buffalo Valley.

"I remember the first time we approached the Tetons," Cyndy said. "We came down through Mammoth and saw all the sites of Yellowstone, but when we rounded that corner south of Flagg Ranch and before you break off on the shores of Jackson Lake, I will never forget that commanding view of the Teton Range sticking up. We just knew that was where we were going to be, but we didn't know we'd be there for 17 years."

That longevity allowed the couple to build strong bonds with many in the Park Service.

Colleague Joan Anzelmo called him "one in a million."

"He was a gentle and humane man who always took the time to help his friends and colleagues," she said in an e-mail. "He had a wonderful sense of humor and found ways to inject humor into most situations. His colleagues sought him out for that special Holda humor which became legend in the National Park Service. He was always drafted at any park gathering to speak or serve as the emcee."

What's more, Holda extended the hand of friendship to people such as Anzelmo in many ways.

"Bill was raised by his mother in a single-family home," she said. "He seemed to recognize that single mothers often needed help but weren't always able to ask for help. As a single mother myself, Bill, often joined by his son, Mitch, helped me with the heavy chores of wood stacking and snow clearing year after year. For this I dubbed him my hero."

Cyndy described Holda as an "old-school ranger" who fought for his rangers and was protective of his staff.

"He was bigger than life," she said. "He had a big, huge heart."

Holda was also remembered by many for playing Santa Claus year after year at Park Service functions.

After his retirement in 2004, the Holdas moved back to North Carolina. There, Holda became a home-improvement specialist and made frequent visits to Ace Hardware, and built a deck on the home.

"I invite any friends from Wyoming to come sit on the deck that Bill built with me and let's remember Billy," Cyndy said.

She said it is through the support of her friends at the Park Service she has gained strength after Holda's death.

He is survived by his wife, Cyndy, a National Park Service employee at Cape Hatteras National Seashore and formerly a Grand Teton National Park employee; his son Mitch, a graduate of Gonzaga University and of Jackson Hole High School; his mother and a sister.

Reporter Whitney Royster can be reached at (307) 734-0260 or at royster@tribcsp.com.