Vivian M. Holden

Vivian Mary Miller Holden, 90, of Coatesville, PA, transitioned from this life to be with the Lord on Thursday, February 12, 2026, at home, surrounded by family.

Affectionately known as "DeeDee," she was the daughter of the late Nancy Boulware and James H. Miller. She was born in Ridgeway, South Carolina, on October 12, 1935. In her early years, the family departed Ridgeway, SC, and moved to Chester, PA. After the family left Chester, they moved to Coatesville, where she resided until her death. She was a lifelong resident of The Historic Carver Court and was one of the first children to live in the community.

She attended the Historic James Adams School and later graduated from S. Horace Scott High School in 1954.

After graduating from high school, she worked at Dutch Cupboard, where she perfected the art of pie crust making. She later was employed at the Historic Whittier C. Atkinson Memorial Hospital, the first African American hospital in Coatesville, as a sterile instrument technician.

Vivian was a member of the Historic Hutchinson Memorial UAME Church, singing in the gospel choir in her youth. She enjoyed attending church banquets and the many shopping trips they would have. She was a former member of the Order of the Eastern Star.

She was the loving wife of the late Ellis B. Holden for over 20 years until his passing in 1993.

Vivian enjoyed cooking, baking, crossword puzzles, and reading the newspaper. She loved listening to music, especially her favorite artist, the late Luther Vandross. She was famously known for looking out of her kitchen window and sitting on the porch in Carver Court, waving to all who passed by or stopped just to say hello. When her health began to decline, she moved to the home of her niece, Nancy L. Walker. As God would have it, she found another favorite window she could look out of while sitting in the dining room.

Vivian was a very kind, generous woman with a heart of gold. She opened her home to many and was an unofficial babysitter for several generations. She was everybody's DeeDee to all who knew her in Carver Court and the Coatesville Community.  She will be remembered for her unwavering love for her family.

She leaves to cherish her memory her nieces, Kimberly B. Miller (Kion), whom she raised, Nancy L. Walker, Christina Walker-Brown, Rev. Francine Vivian Walker, Arlene V. Morgan Cox, and Keenya Robinson; great-nephews Francis Alan Washington, Robert H. Brown, Christian Alan Brown (Arielle); great-great nieces Karizma N. Washington, Aaliyah Morgan Cox, Gabrielle Sullivan, Isabella Brown, Elizabeth Brown; great-great nephews DiNero F. Washington and Fiyah D. Washington; her devoted cousin, John Robinson Jr.; and a host of other nieces, nephews, cousins, family, and friends.

In addition to her parents and her husband, she was preceded in death by her stepdaughter, Antoinette Nixon, her sister Lois Walker, and her brother William Miller.

Homegoing Services will be held at 10 AM, on Saturday, February 21, 2026, at Hutchinson Memorial U.A.M.E. Church, 825 E. Chestnut Street, Coatesville, PA. A viewing will be held from 8:30 AM until 9:45 AM.

Click here on Saturday, February 21st at  9:45 AM  EST to WATCH THE SERVICE LIVE on Zoom. ​

Interment will be held in Rolling Green Memorial Park, West Chester, PA.

Family and friends may share condolences at the guestbook link on this memorial page. All are welcome to light a candle or share a picture in her remembrance.

Flowers may be sent to the church on the day of the service.