1996-07-21, By Carmina Danini Express-News Staff Writer
家庭和社区让霍尔特保持谦逊
家族成功的传承，尤其是他曾祖父本杰明·霍尔特(Benjamin Holt)发明的第一台履带式拖拉机，引发了农业和建筑领域的革命，一直激励着彼得·马丁·霍尔特(Peter Martin Holt)不断进步。正是这种动力促使霍尔特，当时一个刚入伍的19岁年轻人，在越南战争中幸存下来；戒掉多年的酒精依赖并保持清醒；在近十年后重返德克萨斯州之前，在加州独立生活。
“我开玩笑说，我去加州只是延长了我的青春期，”这位圣安东尼奥马刺队的新任主席在东南区办公室接受采访时说道。
霍尔特在本月初被选为接替罗伯特·麦克德莫特(Robert McDermott)担任马刺队主席，他准备为这支球队注入新的活力。这支球队年复一年地取得常规赛的成功，却总是在季后赛中无疾而终。
47岁的霍尔特在收购美国汽车协会(USAA)持有的马刺队13.37%的股份后不到两周便成为了主席。他的持股比例是圣安东尼奥投资人中最高的，仅次于田纳西州纳什维尔盖洛德地产公司(Gaylord Properties)持有的18.41%。
实际上，他解释说，他和妻子朱莉安娜·霍恩(Julianna Hawn)通过一家有限合伙企业HH体育公司(H H Sports Ltd.)购买了这部分股份。
当被问到HH体育公司的名字中，霍恩还是霍尔特在前时，他笑着回答道：“毫无疑问是霍恩在前，霍恩在前。”
尽管他和家人从1988年1月搬到圣安东尼奥以来就一直持有马刺队的季票，但霍尔特坚持说他对篮球知之甚少。
“我正在努力学习关于马刺队的一切；记住，这一切都发生得太快了，”这位身材高挑、身材修长、同时担任霍尔特公司(Holt Companies)总裁兼首席执行官的男子说道。
坐在皮革座椅上，旁边放着一份“不卖，没门”的广告框架，这份广告在马刺队老板拒绝出售提议后的第二天，刊登在了《圣安东尼奥快报》(San Antonio Express-News)和西班牙语周刊《拉普伦萨》(La Prensa)上，霍尔特显得十分放松。
虽然他自称是一个“非常开放的人”，但霍尔特拒绝回答关于其净资产的问题。
“净资产不能衡量一个人的价值，”他说。“我并不是要买，但如果其他（马刺队）投资者愿意以公允价格出售，那么我有一定的能力。”
然后，意识到这句话的轻描淡写，这位身家数百万的富豪咧嘴一笑，一边看着办公室窗外繁茂的花园，一边笑着。
霍尔特的公司办公室位于德克萨斯州霍尔特公司(Holt Co. of Texas)占地80英亩的南W.W.怀特路(South W.W. White Road)上，与圣安东尼奥其他首席执行官的办公室截然不同。
它由波纹金属板构成，像一个谷仓。任何对这栋建筑的怀疑都会被门前一个只有两个词的标牌消除：“谷仓”。
这栋建筑由圣安东尼奥的湖-弗拉托建筑事务所(Lake-Flato)设计，获得了美国建筑师协会(AIA)德克萨斯分会和钣金行业的奖项。
“彼得不想让它成为一个典型的公司办公室，他让我们按照自己的想法去设计，”建筑师泰德·弗拉托(Ted Flato)说道。
弗拉托认识霍尔特几十年了——两人都在科珀斯克里斯蒂长大——他说霍尔特的要求很简单。
“他只是要求我们保留那些橡树，”弗拉托回忆道。“后来，他决定在里面展出他的当代艺术收藏，在外面展出早期卡特彼勒机械的模型。”
霍尔特是三个孩子中的老大，他是在一个每天大部分时间都围绕着建筑设备展开的家庭中长大的。
“我是一个设备迷，”他说。“当家人去度假时，其他人都会去迪士尼乐园，而我和爸爸则会到处停下来看机械。”
在夏季，他会在父亲B.D. “皮特”·霍尔特(B.D. “Pete” Holt)和合伙人在1961年于科珀斯克里斯蒂创办的卡特彼勒公司做机械工助手、焊接工和喷漆工。
霍尔特似乎注定要进入家族企业。但这需要一些时间。
霍尔特在1966年从科珀斯克里斯蒂的国王高中(King High School)毕业后，在秋季入学了德克萨斯基督教大学(Texas Christian University)。
但他在学期结束之前退学了，德克萨斯基督教大学的教务处说。这是一个霍尔特在越南服役前后的常见模式。
霍尔特还在德克萨斯大学奥斯汀分校(University of Texas at Austin)和加州门洛学院(Menlo College)学习。他从未获得过大学学位。
“我是一个糟糕的学生。我甚至记不住自己上过哪些学校，”他说。“我没有被开除，但我就是不喜欢。我到处搬家，这种情况持续了四、五、六年。”
霍尔特压低声音说道：“当然，你可以看看我的学校履历，那里就能看到酒精的影响。我只是在漫无目的地漂泊。”
他的游荡把他带到了加州，在那里，一百多年前，他的曾祖父本杰明·霍尔特(Benjamin Holt)及其兄弟们为美国农业机械化的发展做出了贡献。
在旧金山，这位年轻的德克萨斯人做了一名股票经纪人，但三个月后就辞职了，“因为这不是我的菜。”
他还在丘吉尔酒吧(Churchill’s)做合伙人，当时这是一家蕨类植物酒吧，现在是里士满区(Richmond District)一家受欢迎的街区酒吧，距离金门大桥(Golden Gate Bridge)不远。
后来，霍尔特拥有了村庄旅馆(Village Inn)，这是一家历史悠久的酒店和餐厅，位于索诺玛县(Sonoma County)的蒙特里奥(Monte Rio)，那里是一个度假区。
泰德·弗拉托经常在加州遇见霍尔特，他回忆说他的朋友“在从越南回来后更像是一个60年代的孩子。他也是一个完美的旅馆老板和主人。”
在加州的那些年是“塑造性格的”，霍尔特说，他出生于伊利诺伊州的皮奥里亚(Peoria)，童年时曾在圣安东尼奥居住，后来搬到了科珀斯克里斯蒂。
“我从那些年中学到了很多东西，虽然那是一条更艰难的自我发现之路，但也许这就是上帝决定让我走的道路，”他说。
这位荣获多项勋章的越南老兵——他因英勇表现获得了银星勋章——还担任了洛伊德·本特森(Lloyd Bentsen)1982年参议员竞选的筹款人。
一位圣安东尼奥的知名共和党人说，霍尔特和他的家人一直默默地支持保守派候选人。
1993年，德克萨斯州霍尔特公司(Holt of Texas)举办了一场支持北美自由贸易协定(NAFTA)的集会，吸引了美国参议员菲尔·格雷厄姆(Phil Gramm)、鲍勃·多尔(Bob Dole)和奥林·哈奇(Orrin Hatch)的参与。
几年前，霍尔特意识到酒精是一个他必须解决的问题。
“我意识到我必须戒酒，因为我过着与我想要的生活截然不同的生活，”他说。“我不能半途而废。我必须停下来。”
他说，戒酒并不容易，但他已经多年没有喝过酒了。
除了其他公民义务外，霍尔特还是圣安东尼奥酒精和药物滥用委员会(San Antonio Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse)18名志愿者委员会成员之一。他还是科珀斯克里斯蒂帕尔默药物滥用项目(Palmer Drug Abuse Program)的理事。
委员会主任莎伦·舒克(Sharon Shook)说，霍尔特“是一个福星。他非常积极，是那种你总是想得到的委员会成员。”
1983年，霍尔特与朱莉安娜·霍恩(Julianna Hawn)结婚，朱莉安娜比他高一届。
“她比我大一岁，我以前就像一只小狗一样跟着她。我当时就爱上了她，”霍尔特说，他仍然钟爱跑车。
霍尔特拥有一辆银色保时捷敞篷车，一直对“克尔维特、保时捷以及任何速度快的汽车”情有独钟，”霍尔特在科珀斯克里斯蒂的前商业伙伴乔·莫克里(Joe Mokry)说。
“他喜欢打鹌鹑，而且他是一个努力打高尔夫球的糟糕球手，但他最喜欢的还是这些车，”莫克里说。
霍尔特、霍恩和他们的两个孩子——一个12岁的女孩和一个10岁的男孩——住在布兰科。他还与前妻育有一个23岁的女儿。
布兰科的居民说，霍尔特保持着低调。
“如果他现在走进这里点一杯咖啡，我甚至认不出他，”布兰科保龄球馆咖啡馆(Blanco Bowling Alley Cafe)的女服务员琳恩·卡斯韦尔(Lynn Caswell)说，这家咖啡馆是这个小山区小镇最受欢迎的餐厅之一。
但山核桃街面包店和咖啡馆(Pecan Street Bakery and Cafe)的老板南·汉努斯(Nan Hanus)说，霍尔特一家通常每个月都会在她家咖啡馆吃饭一两次。
“我们知道他们通常都会把盘子里的东西吃完，因为每个人都是这样，”汉努斯说。
霍尔特住宅位于双姐妹社区(Twin Sisters)附近的一处私人牧场，就在布兰科的南部，一面是小白河(Little Blanco River)。它坐落在山区灌木丛中，从将私人车道与县道分隔开的门看不见。
牧场是他们的避风港。在这里，霍恩饲养和繁殖四分之一马；在这里，霍尔特，一个狂热的读者，会阅读关于时事书籍和杂志；在这里，他会加入孩子们的行列，在院子里游泳。
这对夫妇收藏当代艺术和雕塑；他们收集的许多作品都挂在“谷仓”里。
霍尔特夫妇也是蓝星艺术空间(Blue Star Art Space)的主要支持者。
“他们的支持是长期而深入的，”蓝星艺术空间创始人兼董事杰弗里·摩尔(Jeffrey Moore)说道。
这对夫妇特别热衷于资助艺术教育项目，自1990年以来，这些项目使圣安东尼奥学区数千名儿童得以免费观看蓝星艺术空间的展览。
“我想这源于我坚信经验比教育更重要，”霍尔特说。
这位商人说，他生活和公司中的稳定为他接受了马刺队主席的职位提供了可能。
这种稳定也确保了霍尔特保持脚踏实地。
“每当我开始自以为是的时候，我就会回家，然后立即被现实打醒，”他开玩笑地说。
他又笑了起来，承认“彼得·霍尔特会倒垃圾洗碗。我不每天都做，但我们分享（家务）。”
图片由道格·塞赫雷斯(Doug Sehres)拍摄
彼得·霍尔特正在思考他对马刺队的计划。他身后是广告的框架，广告上宣称球队不会出售。
图片由道格·塞赫雷斯(Doug Sehres)拍摄
彼得·霍尔特是发明了第一台履带式拖拉机并引发了农业和建筑革命的霍尔特的曾孙，他站在他位于东南区公司办公室外的设备中。
点击查看原文：Community, family keep Holt humble
Community, family keep Holt humble
The legacy of family success - particularly that of his great-grandfather, Benjamin Holt, whose invention of the first crawler-tractor ignited a revolution in agriculture and construction - always has challenged Peter Martin Holt to do better. It’s what drove Holt, then a newly enlisted 19-year-old, to survive Vietnam; to end years of alcohol abuse and remain sober; and to forge a life in California independent from his family before returning to Texas nearly a decade later.
“I laughingly say I went to California and extended my adolescence for a while,” the new chairman of the San Antonio Spurs said while conducting an interview in his Southeast Side office.
Elected to replace Robert McDermott as Spurs chairman earlier this month, Holt is preparing to inject new life into a team that year after year chalks up successful regular seasons but runs out of steam in the playoffs.
Holt, 47, won the chairmanship less than two weeks after purchasing USAA’s 13.37 percent ownership interest in the Spurs. His stake is the largest of the San Antonio investors but second to the 18.41 percent held by Gaylord Properties of Nashville, Tenn.
Actually, he explained, he and his wife, Julianna Hawn, bought the share through H H Sports Ltd., a limited partnership.
Whose last name is first in H H Sports, he is asked, Hawn or Holt?
“Hawn’s first, no doubt about it. Hawn’s first,” he said laughing.
Although he and his family have held Spurs season tickets since moving to San Antonio in January 1988, Holt maintains he knows little about basketball.
“I’m trying to learn about the Spurs; remember, this all happened quickly,” said the tall, trim man who holds the positions of president and chief executive officer of the Holt Companies.
Sitting in a leather chair, a framed copy nearby of the “No Sale. No Way” ad that ran in the San Antonio Express-News and the Spanish-language weekly La Prensa the day after the owners rejected a sale proposal, Holt appeared relaxed.
Although he describes himself as a “very open person,” Holt declined to answer a question about his net worth.
“Net worth is not the measure of a man,” he said. “I’m not buying, but if the other (Spurs) investors are interested in selling at a fair price, then I have some capability.”
Then, realizing the understatement, the multimillionaire grinned and laughed as he peered at a lush garden just outside his office window.
Located on the 80-acre grounds of the Holt Co. of Texas on South W.W. White Road, Holt’s corporate office building is unlike any other CEO’s in San Antonio.
Made of corrugated metal siding, it resembles a barn. Any doubts about the building are dispelled by a sign out front with just two words: “The Barn.”
Designed by the San Antonio architectural firm of Lake-Flato, the building received awards from the Texas chapter of the American Institute of Architects and from the sheet metal industry.
“Peter didn’t want it to be a typical corporate office and he let us go our way (in the design),” architect Ted Flato said.
Flato, who has known Holt for several decades - both men were raised in Corpus Christi - said Holt’s demands were simple.
“He just asked us to keep the oak trees,” Flato recalled. “Later, he decided to exhibit his collection of contemporary art inside and early models of Caterpillar machinery outside.”
The eldest of three siblings, Holt grew up in a household where, most days, conversations centered around construction equipment.
“I’m an equipment guy,” he said. “When the family was on vacation, everyone else would go to Disneyland while Dad and I would stop everywhere to look at the machinery.”
During the summers, he worked as a mechanic’s helper, in the welding shop and in the paint booth of the Caterpillar business his father, B.D. “Pete” Holt, and a partner started in Corpus Christi in 1961.
It seemed inevitable that Holt would go into the family business. But it would take awhile.
After graduating in 1966 from King High School in Corpus Christi, Holt enrolled for the fall semester at Texas Christian University.
But he withdrew before the semester was completed, the TCU registrar’s office said. It was a pattern Holt would follow before and after serving in Vietnam in the late 1960s.
Holt also studied at the University of Texas at Austin and at Menlo College in California. He never earned a college degree.
“I was a terrible student. I can’t even keep up with the sequence of schools I attended,” he said. “I wasn’t kicked out but I just didn’t like it. I moved around and that went on for four, five, six years.”
His voice lowering, Holt said: “Certainly you can look at my school career and that’s where you can see the alcohol. I just sort of meandered.”
His wanderings took him to California, where more than 100 years earlier, the Holt brothers, chiefly his great-grandfather, Benjamin Holt, had contributed to the mechanization of the agricultural industry in the U.S.
In San Francisco, the young Texan worked as a stockbroker but quit after three months “because it wasn’t for me.”
He also was a partner in Churchill’s, then a fern bar but now a popular neighborhood bar in the Richmond District and not far from the Golden Gate Bridge.
Holt later owned the Village Inn, an historic hotel and restaurant in Monte Rio, a resort community in Sonoma County.
Ted Flato, who often ran into Holt in California, recalled his friend was “more of a '60s child after returning from Vietnam. He was also the perfect innkeeper and host.”
The California years were “character defining,” said Holt, who was born in Peoria, Ill., and lived in San Antonio as a young child before moving to Corpus Christi.
“I learned from those years and while it was a harder way to find myself, maybe that’s what the good Lord decided was the path I had to take,” he said.
The much-decorated Vietnam veteran - he was awarded a Silver Star for gallantry - also worked as a fund-raiser for Lloyd Bentsen’s 1982 senatorial campaign.
Holt and his family, observed a prominent San Antonio Republican, have always been quietly supportive of conservative candidates.
In 1993, a pro-NAFTA rally at the Holt of Texas grounds drew U.S. Sens. Phil Gramm, Bob Dole and Orrin Hatch.
Years earlier, Holt had come to the conclusion that alcohol was an issue with which he had to deal.
“I realized I had to stop because I wasn’t living life the way I wanted it to be,” he said. “I couldn’t have it halfway. I had to stop.”
Giving up drinking was not easy, he said, but he has not taken a drink in years.
Amongst other civic duties, Holt sits on the 18-member volunteer board of the San Antonio Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse. And he is a trustee of the Palmer Drug Abuse Program in Corpus Christi.
Council director Sharon Shook said Holt is “a blessing. He’s very active and the kind of board member you always ask for.”
In 1983, Holt married Julianna Hawn, who had been one year ahead of him in high school.
“She was a year older, and I used to follow her around like a puppy dog. I was in love with her even then,” said Holt, who remains an aficionado of fast cars.
The owner of a silver Porsche convertible, Holt always had a thing for “Corvettes, Porsches, any car that ran fast,” said Joe Mokry, a former business associate of Holt’s in Corpus Christi.
“He likes quail hunting and he’s a poor golfer who tries hard, but nothing gives him as much enjoyment as those cars,” Mokry said.
Holt, Hawn and their two children - a 12-year-old girl and a boy, 10 - live in Blanco. He also has a 23-year-old daughter from a previous marriage.
Blanco residents said Holt keeps a relatively low profile.
“I wouldn’t even know him if he walked in here right now and ordered a cup of coffee,” said Lynn Caswell, a waitress at the Blanco Bowling Alley Cafe, one of the small Hill Country town’s most popular eateries.
But Nan Hanus, owner of the Pecan Street Bakery and Cafe, said Holt and his family usually dine at her cafe once or twice a month.
“We know they usually eat everything on their plate because everybody does,” Hanus said.
The Holt residence, which is on a private ranch near the community of Twin Sisters, is just south of Blanco and flanked on one side by the Little Blanco River. It is nestled among the Hill Country brush and isn’t visible from the gate that separates a private drive from a county road.
The ranch is their refuge. It is here that Hawn breeds and raises quarterhorses; where Holt, an avid reader, devours books and magazines on current events; where he joins his kids in the swimming hole on the property.
The couple collects contemporary art and sculpture; many pieces from their eclectic collection hang in The Barn.
The Holts also are major supporters of the Blue Star Art Space.
“Their support has been long and deep,” Blue Star founding director Jeffrey Moore said.
The couple have been especially keen on funding art education programs that have enabled several thousand children from the San Antonio School District to attend shows at Blue Star for free since 1990.
“I suppose this comes from my belief that education comes more from experience,” Holt said.
Stability in his life and in his company made it possible for him to accept the Spurs chairmanship, the businessman said.
That stability also ensures that Holt remains grounded.
“Any time I get a big head, I just head home and it’s immediately deflated,” he joked.
Laughing again, he admitted that “Peter Holt puts out the trash and washes the dishes. I don’t do it every night, but we share (the chores).”
PHOTO BY DOUG SEHRES
Peter Holt ponders his plans for the Spurs. Behind him is a framed copy of the ad proclaiming the team would not be sold.
PHOTO BY DOUG SEHRES
Peter Holt, great-grandson of the man who invented the first crawler-tractor that ignited a revolution in agriculture and construction, stands amidst equipment outside his corporate office on the Southeast Side.
By Carmina Danini Express-News Staff Writer, via San Antonio Express-News