leevel holmes
1951-1999
Life Story
Early Life and Family Background
Leevel Holmes was born on August 16, 1951, to Sylvester Holmes (1926–2016) and Lucille Evans Holmes (1929–2005). He was raised in a family that valued education, athletics, and community ties, with strong roots connected to Newton County, Mississippi.
Education and Athletics
Leevel was a 1969 graduate of Jackson High School in Jackson, Michigan. Following high school, he pursued higher education and attended Central Michigan University and later Spring Arbor College, where he became an active member of the men’s basketball program.
Newspaper sports coverage from the early 1970s highlights Leevel as a key contributor off the bench, recognized for his scoring ability and athletic presence during competitive NAIA play. His participation at the collegiate level reflects both his talent and the expanding opportunities for African American athletes during this era.
Marriage and Family
In 1969, Leevel Holmes married Beverly I. Jones in Jackson, Michigan. From this union, one son was born:
- David Lee Holmes
Later Life
In later years, Leevel resided in New Orleans, Louisiana, though he maintained enduring family and community connections to Mississippi. His life reflected a blend of migration, education, and family responsibility common to many African American families in the post–Civil Rights era.
Death and Burial
Leevel Holmes passed away on October 27, 1999, at the age of 48. Funeral services were held privately in Newton, Mississippi, and he was laid to rest at Saint John Missionary Baptist Church graveyard, returning to the community with which his family history is deeply intertwined.
Interpretive Sidebar: Athletics as Opportunity
Leevel Holmes’s collegiate basketball career illustrates how athletics served as a pathway to higher education and broader horizons for African American men in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Newspaper coverage that preserved his athletic contributions now functions as an important historical record—capturing moments of excellence that might otherwise be lost to time.
Resting Place
Saint John Missionary Baptist Church Graveyard
Photos/Albums
Sources
- U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current
- Jackson Citizen Patriot, Leevel Holmes Obituary, Fri, Oct 29, 1999 ·Page 5
- U.S., Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume 1
- Jackson Citizen Patriot, Holmes-Lowe Wed, Sun, Oct 24, 1999 ·Page 63
- Jackson Citizen Patriot, Marriage Licenses, Thu, Sep 11, 1969 ·Page 18
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