By 
“Jerome, do something” was the call.
To the young man, Jerome “Jerry” Holtzman a student from Highmore traveling across Tunisia, that call would be the invitation of his life — a life that ended on Feb 11, 2025, in Watertown.
While a student at St. John’s University, Holtzman studied for 1 1/2 years in Vienna, Austria, and worked for the United Nations Secretariat. With Vienna as his base, Holtzman explored Europe. He and his classmates had an audience with Pope Pius and once dined with Padre Pio Forgione. Now revered by the Catholic Church as “Saint Pio,” Forgione was an Italian priest and friar of the Franciscan Order known for his stigmata, the visible wounds of Jesus Christ on his hands and feet. Years later, writing about his encounter with the future saint, Holtzman said he couldn’t remember the conversation, but was awe-struck. “Another moment surprised by grace,” he wrote.
Fr. Jerry at his beloved Holy Name Church. Courtesy photo.
While enamored with the history and culture of Vienna, Holtzman was keenly aware of the hardships of civilian population in the aftermath of World War II. While on a visit to the north African nation of Tunisia, he was the struck by the extreme poverty of the local population, especially mothers trying to care for young children.
This was where he first heard the call of “Jerome, do something.”
Returning to the United States, Holtzman graduated from St. John’s University with undergraduate degrees in French and German in 1952. He studied Latin for one year at St. Jerome’s College in Kitchener, Ontario, before beginning his studies at Saint Paul Seminary in Minnesota. He spent summers during that time working at the Swift Packing Plant and the U.S. Steel Mill in Chicago. He lived at the Peter Maurin House, a home for men on “Skid Row.” Chicago proved to be important to Holtzman, as it opened his heart to the working poor in America. Social justice would be a cornerstone of his ministry.
Following Holtzman’s Feb. 21 funeral, Bishop Donald DeGrood said, “What a blessing it has been to get to know Father Jerry, and the beautiful friendship that would evolve because of his love for the Lord and for people.”
The Victor and Ella Brady Holtzman family. Courtesy photo.
Jerome Joseph Holtzman was born in November 1930 to Victor and Ella Brady Holtzman, their first son after the births of four daughters. His grandparents included James and Anna Noonan Brady of Highmore and Joseph F. and Margaret Boehm Holtzman of Indiana.
His grandmother’s brother was Father Pius Boehm, who followed Bishop Martin Marty to Dakota Territory from St. Meinrad’s Archabbey in Indiana, and established the Immaculate Conception Indian Mission at Stephan. Not only did this lead Victor Holtzman to South Dakota to help his uncle, it eventually led his son to feel the call to mission work, too.
Victor Holtzman died in 1942. This prompted both his widow and 11-year-old Jerry into the workforce. Ella was eventually elected Clerk of Courts and Registrar of Deeds in Hyde County, while Jerry did a variety of odd jobs around Highmore, from shining shoes to candling eggs to being a shepherd. Education and the arts were important to Holtzman’s; Ella had taught school before her marriage, and Victor was involved in a local band. All their children finished high school and attended college. Jerry graduated in 1948, after a stand-out athletic and academic career as a Highmore Pirate.
Father Holtzman with is mother and grandmother following his ordination. Courtesy photo.
Marne Hult and Julianne Endres with Father Holtzman. Photo courtesy of Marne Hult.
Father Jerome Joseph Holtzman was ordained to the Catholic priesthood on June 2, 1957, by Bishop Lambert Hoch. His first assignment was at St. Thomas More in Brookings. Shortly afterward, he was asked to pursue a master’s degree in German and French at the University of South Dakota. As part of his studies, Holtzman studied the language and culture of the Hutterites, working with the Bon Homme Colony near Tabor. He always enjoyed conversing with Hutterites in their own langue, often times surprising them.
From 1959-1965, Holtzman was assigned to Holy Family Parish in Mitchell, and then taught at O’Gorman until 1969. Holtzman ministered at St. Agnes Parish in Vermillion from 1969-1979, and at St. Lambert Parish in Sioux Falls until 1986. Along the way, he earned master’s degrees in French and German. During these years, the Catholic Church underwent sufficient changes following the Second Vatican Council. Most notably, Vatican II called for use of the common language in place of Latin. With his mastery of language, Holtzman knew the importance of communication. He believed prayer in one’s own tongue unites the souls not only to God, but to each other. With his own brand of humility, Holtzman was happy to see Vatican II deal with clericalism as well. “It’s good to know the Church is always changing,” he wrote.
Father Holtzman with a Buddhist monk in Thailand. Courtesy photo.
In 1986, Holtzman began what he thought would mission work in Thailand, but it soon became clear to him that he “did not go to evangelize, but to be evangelized.” While in Thailand, he worked with the Maryknoll Order and assisted Hmong refugees. He also used this a base to explore the Himalayas. In a letter home, Holtzman wrote: “I was not alone, but connected. I was one with the earth encircling all people, one with the Creator. God embracing his creation. So, I concluded, a missionary is never alone; he is only a footstep away from home. … This is salvation. This is the basis of our Christian hope.”
Returning to the United States, Holtzman took up the pastorship of Holy Name Church in Watertown. He retired in 2000, becoming “a happy fish on Lake Kampeska.” Over his 30 years in Watertown, Holtzman become a grandfatherly figure for many, an elder statesman of Catholicism. He served as chaplain to Mother of God Monastery and the Abbey of the Hills in Marvin and often filled in at churches in the area. He enjoyed telling stories of his travels to students at Immaculate Conception School. With the faithful of Holy Name, Holtzman shared the joy of his Golden Jubilee in 2007 and his 60th anniversary 10 years later. While the years took a toll on Holtzman, his faith was steadfast. In recent years, he was a resident at Benet Place and the Village of Harmony Hill, where he made yet still more friends. Becoming a resident of Jenkins Living Center in autumn 2024, Holtzman said his last Mass on Jan 16.
Father Holtzman is assisted by Father John Lantsberger at his last Mass. Photo courtesy of Marne Hult.
Father Holtzman and his “Family of Friends” in Watertown. Courtesy photo.
Despite his travels, Holtzman remained true to his birthright as a son of the prairie. While he was completing his studies, his mother and siblings all left Highmore, eventually settling around Chicago. Yet, Holtzman stayed. His mission, his “do something,” was in South Dakota. In his later years, his sisters invited him to live near them, but as his obituary says, “He wanted to stay in Watertown to be near his friends and his life’s work. He was devoted to the land and to the people of South Dakota.”
In that spirit Holtzman was buried in the plains of Hyde County, his gravestone reading: Je Vais Jouer Pour Dieu; French for “I will play for God.”
His calling was to remain in South Dakota, but it was really his “family of friends,” as Marne Hult of the Catholic Community Foundation for Eastern South Dakota called them, that allowed this to be reality. Barb Olson, the first parish nurse at Holy Name, would accompany Holtzman on his medical journey. Other friends would help with physical labor, others with technology, others with finances, others in the garden, still others helped him his mind sharp. “His friends meant so much to him. Everybody just loved him,” Olson said.
