Beth Barcus Holtz

LAKE NONA, FL - Beth Barcus Holtz, devoted wife and best friend of collegiate football coach, Lou Holtz, has passed away following an extended illness. She was 82.

Born on March 29, 1938, in East Liverpool, Ohio, Beth was the daughter of the late John “Bus” Barcus and Eleanor Czech Barcus. She was a bright student in school and graduated from East Liverpool High School as a member of the National Honor Society with the class of 1956. Beth studied radiology at St. Francis Hospital in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Beth and Lou met during high school and were married on July 22, 1961 as they commenced a Hall of Fame football coaching career that took Beth and him to Virginia, Connecticut, South Carolina, Ohio, North Carolina, New York, Arkansas, Minnesota and Indiana making good friends and impacting lives along the way.

An entrepreneur and founded The Tennis Hog Shop in Arkansas, Beth also took business classes at the University of Arkansas. After several years of successfully growing the business to three locations, she sold the Tennis Hog Shop.

Charity work was one of Beth’s callings. She tended to be behind the scenes and give anonymously with some of her work which included volunteering at the No-One Dies Alone program at the Orlando Regional Hospital. In 1998, Beth and Lou founded the Holtz Family Foundation which promotes education, religion, and charity. At that time, Notre Dame recognized her love and attention that she showed to Lou’s players by awarding her an honorary Monogram.

The couple currently resides in Lake Nona, Florida where Beth was a member of the Blessed Trinity Catholic Church and The Lake Nona Ladies Bible Study Group where she was the founder and a leader of the group, for fifteen years.

In addition to Lou, Beth’s family includes two sisters, Brenda (Ralph) Harker and Johanna Haley who reside in Norfolk, Virginia; a daughter Luanne (Terry) Altenbaumer of Houston, Texas; their daughter, Lindsay (Raul) Altenbaumer-Ganzalez, who is expecting Beth’s first great grandchild; a son, Louis L. “Skip” (Jennifer) Holtz, Jr. of Ruston, Louisiana; their children: Trey, Chad and Hailey; a son Kevin (Kelly) Holtz of Port Orange, Florida, their children Aaron and Katherine; and a daughter Elizabeth “Liz” (Mike) Messaglia of Brownsburg, Indiana; their children Zachary, Beth and Jacob.

A Visitation will be held on Sunday, July 5, from 6 to 9 pm at the Kaniewski Funeral Home, 3545 North Bendix Drive, South Bend, Indiana.  A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Monday, July 6, at 9:30 am, at the Basilica of Sacred Heart on the campus of the University of Notre Dame with burial to follow at Cedar Grove Cemetery, Notre Dame, Indiana. 

A Mass of Christian Burial will be live-streamed at https://campusministry.nd.edu/mass-worship/basilica-of-the-sacred-heart/funeral-live-stream/ or by clicking "watch mass" link on Basilica.nd.edu. 

In lieu of flowers, please send memorial contributions to Holtz’s Heroes Foundation, Inc.

Attn: Brian Baker: 9630 Claymount Lane Fishers, Indiana 46037 or at www.holtzsheroes.org.

The Dawson Funeral Home of East Liverpool, Ohio is in charge of arrangements.

View Beth’s memorial webpage and express condolences online at www.dawsonfuneralhome.com.

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