Chris Mulholland's Obituary
Christopher Ulrich Mulholland, Major, US Marine Corps (retired), age 66 of Chesapeake, passed away peacefully at home with his family surrounding him on Friday, January 24, 2025 of Lou Gehrig’s disease. Born 9 March 1958 in Oxford, England, he was the eldest of two sons of the late Iris (Frese) Mulholland of Chesapeake and Daniel Mulholland of Somerville, Mass.
Chris spent many of his formative years growing up in the small German village of Hesperinghausen in Northern Hesse, the same village where his mother’s family traces their roots back to in the early 1600s.
In April 1982, he married the love of his life, Barbara Ann Langone – they first met at a Friendly’s Ice Cream in Massachusetts.
A graduate of Norwich University in Vermont, Chris was commissioned an infantry officer in the Marine Corps in 1980 and retired after 20 years of honorable and decorated service, to include tours in Beirut, Lebanon and Northern Iraq. The Corps brought him to Chesapeake in 1991. He was a graduate of the Naval War College and earned a Masters from ODU. The family loved the community so much, they never left. After his retirement from active service in 2000, Chris worked the next 21 years as a government contractor.
He began his life-long passion with soccer as a five year old player in Germany and he became a successful player, coach, and - most of all - a referee. As a player he won numerous number of team and individual awards. As a USSF licensed coach he managed teams from U8B to men's division 1. But it was as a referee that he had his greatest success. Before his retirement from the active ranks, he was one of the top 200 USSF referees in the country and working top professional matches up and down the East coast. He taught and mentored thousands of referees around the globe
In 2004, he and his son Kevin became involved with power soccer (powered wheelchair soccer) and he led the development of the International Laws of the Game. He was the first Director of International Referees for the Federation Internationale de Powerchair Football Association (FIPFA) and the first VP of the US Power Soccer Association (USPSA). He and Kevin stood up the Virginia Power Soccer Association (VPSA) and formed the Tidewater Piranhas who have twice earned silver at nationals.
He was the lead referee at the inaugural 2007 World Cup in Tokyo and traveled the globe, teaching other referees, guiding the establishment and development of new national programs, and being an ambassador for the sport. He officiated the European national and club championships, the Americas Cup, the Copa Libertadores, the Copa Sudamerica, and numerous US National Championships.
After his ALS diagnosis, the wheel turned and he became a player again, this time in power soccer. With his first game he made some historic firsts: first parent-child duo to play in a sanctioned power soccer match, and first athlete with ALS to play competitive soccer in US - and probably world - history. Besides playing with his son Kevin, scoring five goals in nine regular season matches, and winning silver at the 2022 National Championships, he was proud of earning the only yellow card on the team!
Chris was extremely involved in helping his community and serving others; a 40 year member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) he served as the Commander of VFW Post 2894 and as the National Deputy Chief of Staff. He also served as a Past Grand Knight of Knights of Columbus Council 8240, earning numerous national awards with both organizations including six consecutive VFW All American Post awards. Within the city of Chesapeake, he served on a number of commissions and committees. He served in leadership positions for a variety of local, national, and international soccer and referee associations; and with the Boy Scouts as Cubmaster for Cub Scout Pack 57 and Advancement Chairman with Troop 57. Of his original ten Tiger Cubs, six earned Eagle Scout.
Chris was an avid reader (mostly histories) with a personal library of more than 2,000 books. He was also an ‘amateur’ genealogist, with more than 41,000 individuals in his family tree. On his paternal grandmother’s side, the family traces their roots back to the 1620 Mayflower landing at Plymouth Rock. On his Mulholland line, the family arrived in 1850 North America during the worst of the potato famine in Ireland. He wrote numerous biographies about various ancestors. His youngest son, Christopher, is the 15th generation to serve in an American uniform, going back to the Ancient and Honourable Artillery Company of Massachusetts in 1638.
An accomplished multi-sport athlete himself, Chris loved watching his New England Patriots, Boston Bruins, Boston Red Sox, and Boston Celtics win. He has been a rabid fan of the German national soccer team since watching them play in the 1966 World Cup. While watching sports on TV he would amaze those around him by calling fouls and penalties long before anyone else, including the announcers, saw them.
Chris had the Irish gift of gab and loved to meet new people. He would typically start with, “So where are you from?” Within a few minutes, he and they would be good friends. If they were from another country, he usually had a couple of words for them in their language. If they were from New York, he would tease them unmercifully as a Boston fan, but it always ended in laughter and camaraderie. His Facebook friends span the globe.
Whatever Chris attempted, he was extremely successful at. Despite coming from a family full of thumbs, he enjoyed building things with his hands. He first picked up a rifle and pistol when he entered the Corps and became a successful competitive shooter. He never did anything with less than 150% effort. He loved to travel with Barbara, particularly off the beaten trail. He loved to cook. He loved the outdoors. He loved telling ‘dad jokes.’ He loved a house full of kids and friends. He lived with gusto, he laughed with gusto, and he loved with gusto.
After his diagnosis of Lou Gehrig disease on Friday the 13th, November 2020, Chris became a fierce and passionate advocate for veterans battling ALS. He developed a checklist for other veterans who receive an ALS diagnosis. He organized and led three teams that raised $23,000 for the Walk Against ALS. He wrote an OpEd, “ALS Is Killing Veterans,” that was published world-wide by the Military Times (October 28, 2021.) He authored a resolution, "Combating ALS in the Veteran Community," which was unanimously passed by the VFW's 123rd National Convention and calls upon Congress to dedicate more resources for veterans stricken with ALS. He was featured in a nationally shown news story titled "Veterans Voices".
Chris used to say, “My blood type and view on life are both the same: B Positive!”
He always closed his correspondence with, “I will fight this battle till my dying breath.” And he did, and continued his battle even after death by donating his brain to ALS research.
To the very end, Chris lived his life in accordance with the words of Saint John Paul II: “Never, ever give up on hope, never doubt, never tire, and never become discouraged. Be not afraid.”
Chris is survived by his wife, Barbara; his children, sons Kevin and 1LT Christopher, USAR & wife Emilia (Libertini) of Chesapeake, and daughter Katy DeLacy & husband Rich of Dracut, Mass.; his beloved grandchildren, Adelyn Iris, Ella Rose and Christopher Archer DeLacy; his brother Maxwell Mulholland & wife Lynn (Walker) of Winthrop, Mass.; three half-sisters, Anna Mulholland of Brookline, Mass., Larissa (Mulholland) Abbruzzesse of Chicago, and Abigail (Mulholland) McGarry of Norfolk, England; as well as nephews, nieces, & numerous in-laws. He was predeceased by his father, Daniel Mulholland and mother, Iris M. Frese.
We are immensely grateful to the tireless doctors and nurses who navigated the landscape of this illness with us and to the astounding nurses from Maxim Health Care who became our roommates, often sacrificing time with their own families to be with ours The family especially thanks Father Neal Nichols of St. Benedict's Catholic Church; Dr. Andrew Galbreath, Director of the Sentara ALS Clinic; Brian Bailey of ProBed; and Chris' aides (whom he affectionately called his "mother hens"), caregivers, Jacqueline Jiles, Sonya Mathews, and nurses, Kiasia Ketter and Tania Sheppherd who took extraordinary care of him, and became family members over the past years. The family would also like to express sincere gratitude to Fr. Neal Nichols, who provided weekly visits of prayer, sacraments and friendship.