Holce Logging Company

Photo courtesy Jerry Budge

The Beginning

Wilfred Holce, founder of the company was born in Clatskanie, Oregon in 1924. The family soon moved to the Mist/Vernonia, Oregon area where he was raised. One summer school break was spent falling timber where he learned about working in the woods.

Mist School 1938

Wilfred Holce

(brother Tom is at far left in bottom row)

In 1943, Wilfred left Vernonia High School prior to graduation to join the Navy. He earned his diploma during basic training.

Wilfred Holce and Evelyn Hearing

Pictured next to one another in the 1943 Vernonia High School Yearbook, the couple married in Vancouver, Washington on September 23, 1943, seven days after Wifred's 19th birthday. They lived in several communities while Wilfred served in the U.S. Navy, including Oklahoma, Florida (where he was an instructor on aircraft), Whidbey Island, Washington, and Tongue Point, Oregon. Following his discharge in 1945 they moved to the Vernonia community.

Evelyn Hearing

Wilfred Holce

1943 Vernonia High School Memolog

Wedding portrait

Evelyn Hearing Holce and Wilfred Holce February 1965 with Evelyn's Piper Tri-Pacer 180

Selective Service Registration Card

Marriage Certificate

Following the war, Wilfred returned to Vernonia. His first job was selling cars for the local Chevy dealer. A year later he went to work for the Oregon American sawmill. "He worked on the pond. He always thought he was very catty on his feet because everyone had a trip into the (millpond) water except him," his wife Evelyn reported during an interview about the Company. "Then, she noted with a slight laugh, that one morning he was hurrying at the pond, hit a cable, and tumbled head first into what's recalled as the fairly foul pond of water, whence he then turned around and returned home." He also helped unloading trucks at the pond, but eventually, he went back to working in the woods.

Oregon American Sawmill in Vernonia

Photographs courtesy Randy Holce unless otherwise noted

After the stint at the mill, Wilfred went to work for Johnson and Hughes Lumber Company (later known as Olympic Forest Products) falling timber, and after a while established a partnership, Holce and Juola, with Russ Juola in 1948.

Russ Juola & Wilfred Holce, 1948

"It was just the two of them then," Mrs. Holce explained. "They bought a two-man Mall saw. They worked their first job with the power saw, and hired a crawler. They bought the timber and hired the crawler to haul it. After a couple jobs like that...they bought an Allis Chalmer HD7.: She noted that while they tried borrowing the money from the bank, the bank would not loan it, "so we had to go through a finance firm and paid $660 a month for six months. They knew we couldn't do it, but we did. That's how you had to start." She noted, "that's the scariest thing we did, to sign our names on that." But they survived it, and the company made another step forward.

Original Cash Receipt for

Mall Chainsaw: $487.00

L-R: Russ Juola, faller, Fred Larson, Wilfred Holce

When Wilfred's younger brother Tom graduated from High School in 1950, he joined the business after Russ Juola left, and the firm changed to Holce Brothers. It was still just a two-man show for the most part, though they may have had a helper as well. Around 1955 Tom Holce entered the service. "Dad bought him out," said Randy Holce, and since that time, it's been Holce Logging. They were still a fairly small outfit over the next few years, mostly skidder logging. "We had an HD6, and an HD21 crawler and loader," Holce said. Most of the work at that time was running a single side, doing some road building and small logging jobs, :...mostly a Cat and rubber tired skidder logging, with a fairly small crew," "For a long time, it was just three guys and dad."

In 1972 they purchased their first tower, a Waite Tower, "He's the man who made it," said Randy Holce. "Longview Fiber wanted us to do it," said Mrs. Holce, "so that's what we did. Wilfred always worked real close with those fellows and what they wanted is what we did, plus their timber was getting older at that time too."

The first tower was a short experience, which ended in the tower's being dumped over. "Nobody got hurt, thank goodness," Mrs. Holce explained, rolling her eyes at the memory. "Oh boy, did they learn lots of good lessons over that. That's when they started really being careful. It was an inexpensive little tower. Then we bought the newer tower, a Skagit Bu80, which was slightly used. That was in '74 and it was a '72 model. A vast improvement, including hydraulic jacks."

Because of the experience with the tower, they learned what to do right through a lot of hard work and experience. "A whole lot of it," Mrs. Holce said, "they went to other jobs and watched, then learned by watching, coming home and putting it into effect through trial and error." That together with working to stabilize the crew, which at that time was sometimes a very tough situation to maintain led to success. "It took at least two years 'til we got a crew that stayed long enough," to where they gained confidence and competence.

From an early time in the company's existence, Wilfred Holce saw that the most important asset the company could have was a stable, quality workforce, which is why he stated a Keogh plan back in the 1960s, Mrs. Holce said. "He figured that way, the crew would be interested in watching out for us." In 1974, the company incorporated and started a defined contribution profit sharing plan.

The Holces' commitment to sharing and giving back went beyond employees to the community. Dad always believed in giving back and sharing the wealth too," Randy Holce explained. "We started a non-profit private foundation in 1986." The Holce Logging Company Scholarship Fund gives scholarships to graduates from the local Vernonia High School. In 2021 we gave $26,000 in scholarships to graduates. It's a perpetual fund with over $450,000 in assets now. The scholarships are from the earnings, and range from $1,800 to $5,000. Those receiving scholarships can reapply after the first year. People have to graduate within five years to be eligible for it. The fund has awarded over $423,000 in scholarships through 2022."

Randy Holce 2004

The company went through several transitions after Wilfred Holce died in 1993. Initially, operations were run by his youngest son, Rick, younger brother to Randy who explained that "he worked with us when he was younger, then went his separate way for a number of years." When Wilfred Holce died, Rick returned to the operation, running it until 1998 when he passed away. After that time Randy, who is a CPA and had run the business side of Holce Logging since 1974, managed the operations as well. He was also the manager of the Credit Union in Vernonia.

Rick Holce 1972

Randy Holce said in a 2004 interview, "I handle the business end. Every one of the guys out in the brush knows their jobs better than we do. Much of the crew is still dad's crew," Randy stated, a testimony to the soundness of the operation set in place fifty years ago. Wilfred Holce would smile at the very long shadow he cast over so many people.

Evelyn Hearing Holce

1925-2020

Evelyn Holce was raised and received her education in the communities of Haines, Ore., Portland, Ore., and Longview, Washington, until 1935 when she moved with her family to the Vernonia community where her father started a grocery store. She worked for her dad at Sam's Food Store during high school. Right out of high school, she went to work as a bookkeeper for the Oregon-American Lumber Company and later worked in town at Washington Grade School as Secretary to Principal Paul Gordon. Eventually she started bookkeeping for the family business, Holce Logging Company. She was very active in the community, a world traveler and held a private pilot's license.

In 1983, Evelyn and Wilfred established the Holce Logging Company Scholarship Fund Inc., which through the decades has given several hundred Vernonia High School graduates the chance to further their educations. That legacy outlives them both as scholarship grants continue to be awarded indefinitely out of the trust income.

The Crew

Vernonia Friendship Jamboree Logging Show 1962. The log is an old growth Douglas fir, harvested by Holce Logging, hauled by Dave Skidmore from Longview Fibre timberlands. The log was a #1 peeler, contained 8,140 net board feet and brought $915.75 at the mill ($112.50 per MBF).

Pictured (left to right) John Normand, Archie Dass, Don Wantland, Bill Bergerson, Bill Pond, Gene Weller, Tiny Normand, Homer Fuller, George Brown, Lynn Michener, Bud Gibson, Delmar Michener, Melvin Bergerson, Don Webb, Wilfred Holce, and Dave Skidmore. All were Vernonia area loggers

Left: Tom Budge, Longview Fibre Tree Farm Manager. Right: Wilfred Holce

Left: Dave Skidmore Right: Wilfred Holce #1 Log Truck

1977

Left: Fred Skidmore Right: Wilfred Holce

Bullbuck Ernie Christensen

Chaser Randy Roberts

1990

Left: Wilfred Holce Right: Vince Baker

1999

Company party at Holce residence (1980s)

New feller/buncher on display at the Oregon Logging Conference mid 1990s

Left to Right: Top - Vince Baker, machine operator, Middle Row - Donald Normand, Rick Holce, Frank Reynolds

Bottom Row - Mark Lamping, Jim Hult, Bryan Roberts, Joe Richardson, Jerry Budge, Chris Cota, Thomas Jones, Tony Hyde, Amos Cutright, Ray Kyser

2004

Taking a quick break, left to right: longest term employee Larry Oblack (29 years), Prentice 625 operator), Larry Elton (25 years, Cat 330 with drums operator), Bryan Roberts (330 f-b operator), Kenny Parker (rigging slinger) and Jim Hult (Cat325 operator).

Courtesy Timber Harvesting Jan/Feb 2004

Foreman Jerry Budge

Left to Right: Mark Lamping (330 loader operator), Chris Cota (330 with Sidewinder processor), Steve Cutright (yarder operator), Dan Davidson (skidder operator).

Courtesy Timber Harvesting Jan/Feb 2004

The Equipment