Born in Buffalo, NY on July 6, 1939 to very proud parents, Carl P. Hollstein, Sr. and Florence Rose (Lauber) Hollstein, Carl was a good student, skilled Boy Scout, and accomplished singer in his church choir. After graduating from State University of New York (SUNY), Buffalo with a degree in Engineering, he married and moved to San Jose, CA where he had two children, attended Stanford Graduate School, and soon joined the work force of early “Silicon Valley”. His work at IBM and other tech firms there attracted Intel Corporation, who moved his family to Oregon and him into management at their new plant in Hillsboro. Carl’s management and productivity skills eventually led to a global position as Director of Systems Quality at Intel, working closely with Andy Grove. He went on to additional career accomplishments, including many years as head of manufacturing at Protocol Systems. He holds 7 patents, published numerous articles, and further contributed to field of engineering systems quality through teaching at Portland State University Engineering School and as President of their Foundation Board. In his free time, Carl was an accomplished sailor, an avid wood artist, supreme “fixer of everything”, and a proud and engaging husband, father, grandfather, and friend.
Carl’s career accomplishments were great, but his family, friends, and coworkers will remember him even more for the great impact of his personal character. He was one of the finest men one could meet, with a truly caring, honest, loyal, and sincere way about him; always offering a helping hand, a kind gesture, or a sincere compliment. With such a depth of sentimentality, he could easily be brought to tears when touched by love or pride.
Carl is survived by his beloved and adoring wife of over 27 years, Diane Hollstein, his cherished and grateful children, son Eric Hollstein (with wife Emily Hauth), daughter Gretchen Hollstein (with husband James Mayer, and children Carson Hollstein Mayer & Courtney Hollstein Mayer), as well as his much-loved and dear stepsons Aaron Christensen (with wife Krisi Christensen and children Stephanee Benz with husband Matt Benz, Michael & Drew), and Drew Christensen (with wife Heather Christensen and children Emma, Joseph, & Jack).
Carl’s loving family witnessed firsthand the painful impact of Alzheimer’s, as it slowly steals your loved ones away through their loss of abilities, interaction, and sometimes personality. We appreciate any help in fighting the disease, so in lieu of other gifts we ask that you consider a donation to the Alzheimer’s Association of Oregon (www.alz.org/oregon).
A celebration of life service will be held at Finley Sunset Hills Mortuary in Portland, OR on April 19, 2018 at 11:00am.
