Bryant Clinton Holmes

Bryant Clinton Holmes was born in Los Angeles, California on October 2, 1951 to Robert Arthur Holmes and Jane Elizabeth Holmes. He was the third born of four children, and the only son. In the early fifties, the Holmes family moved to Pacoima, CA, where Bryant attended Vaughn Street Elementary School, San Fernando Jr. High, and San Fernando High School. He moved to Los Angeles, and in 1969 he graduated from Hamilton High School. During that time he also met the woman who would later become his wife (DeBorah Barnett).

Shortly after high school, Bryant entered the United States Army in October of 1971, where he was an airplane mechanic. He received his honorable discharge August of 1975. He then reunited with the love of his life, DeBorah. From that union they had four children; Howard Alonzo, Sparkle Tiandra, Jazmin Richelle, and Valon Clinton. Bryant was much like his own father, who was himself a strong family man. Both men were hard working, nurturing fathers, who loved their children unconditionally. Bryant never missed an opportunity to support and cheer-on his children in their endeavors; this included football, baseball, dance recitals, cheerleading and he even took time to be at his grandson Dillon’s swimming lessons. Being a grandfather was the light of his life. Besides his own children, Bryant was a father figure to many others.

Bryant had several passions in life. Along with being a very family oriented man, he enjoyed having Bar-B-Ques. No one could beat the man on the grill. In 1991, Bryant founded his own company, Unique B Janitorial Services, where he worked tirelessly. He poured his heart and soul into building his business, sometimes working 15-hour days; while also working full-time with The State of California, Department of General Services. Sadly, in 2004, he was forced to retire due to health reasons. Besides being passionate about his family and his business, Bryant had a love for music. He was a self-taught bass player, and he leaves behind a library of songs that he himself wrote. He enjoyed a wide variety of music and listened to artists ranging from John Coltrain to Lil Wayne. He also had a passion for cars. At the age of 12, Bryant, with the assistance of his father, built a motorized go-cart, which was the envy of all the neighborhood kids. More recently, he became an avid movie buff, and has collected hundreds of movies. His favorites were Gangster movies, Cowboy (shit-kickers as he would call them) movies, and Comedies. He loved to laugh. Because of his integrity, he did not believe in collecting bootleg movies, and would have no part of them in his collection.

Sadly, on October 12, 2010, Bryant quietly and peacefully passed away in his sleep. He was preceded in death by both of his parents, his nephew Gary Cunningham Jr., along with his best friend and brother Conrad Haynes. He leaves to mourn, his wife DeBorah, his children Howard (Veronica), Sparkle, Jazmin, and Valon, and his only grandchild Dillon Bryant, his mother in law Gladys Hill. He also leaves to mourn, his sisters Linda, Vicky, and Fern, and nieces Christa, Nicole, and Alicia. Because Bryant’s mom passed when he was a teenager, he became very attached to his Aunt Shirley, who he looked at as a mother. She too was always there for him. He also leaves to mourn, brothers-in-law, Roland Barnett and Richard Hill, along with a host of aunts, uncles, cousins and relatives. He will forever be loved and missed.

Arrangements under the direction of Valley Funeral Home, Burbank, CA.