Obituary of Lawrence Holdridge

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Lawrence F. Holdridge (83) of Amityville, New York who died peacefully in his sleep after a brief illness. Lawrence graduated from Ithaca College and received his master’s degree in Music Education from Queens College. He became a passionate and dedicated educator teaching music and as the choral director at Berner/Massapequa High School for 30 years. Lawrence led the choir to numerous regional and state awards and instilled in his students a love of classical music, many of whom would go on to have great careers in the industry. Lawrence cherished the numerous letters he received over the years from former students thanking him for the impact he had on their lives.

Lawrence was known worldwide as being one of the most well-respected collectors and dealers of records from the 78-rpm era. For over 50 years, Lawrence took great pride in sharing his knowledge and collection of some of the rarest and most cherished recordings. He collaborated as producer on numerous projects including, “The Edison Trials – Voice Audition Cylinders of 1912-1913” which won historical record of the year from Classic Record Collector magazine.

Lawrence was predeceased by his wife, Janice (Rice) Holdridge, in 2021. He was the proud father of Laurette Ullian and her husband Tom, and cherished Grandpa to Jack and Nicholas Ullian. He is also survived by his sister Barbara Turro and her husband Louis, and seven nieces and nephews.

Visiting hours will be at Powell Funeral Home (67 Broadway, Amityville, NY) on Monday, February 20th, from 2:00-4:00 p.m. and 6:30-8:00 p.m. Graveside service will be at Pinelawn Memorial Park in Farmingdale, NY on Tuesday, February 21st, at 10:00 a.m. For those attending the service, please meet at Powell Funeral Home at 9:30 a.m. for the procession to Pinelawn Memorial Park.