Paul Hollis

Paul Hollis
Member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from the 104th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 9, 2012
Preceded by	Nita Hutter
Personal details
Born	Paul Bryan Hollis (1972-09-01) September 1, 1972 Metairie, Louisiana, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse(s)	Ashley Tastet
Children	2
Parents	Jane and Ken Hollis
Alma mater	Grace King High School Louisiana State University, Baton Rogue
Religion	United Methodist[1]
Website	Campaign website

Paul Bryan Hollis (born September 1, 1972) is a Republican member of the Louisiana House of Representatives from the revised 104th District in St. Tammany Parish in southeastern Louisiana.

A son of the late State Senator Ken Hollis, Paul Hollis defeated fellow Republican Christopher Trahan, 3,905 votes (56 percent) to 3,096 (44 percent) in the nonpartisan blanket primary held on October 22, 2011.^[2]

Hollis is an announced candidate for the United States Senate seat held by the Democrat Mary Landrieu in the primary scheduled for November 4, 2014. His opponents include fellow Republicans Bill Cassidy, a member of the United States House of Representatives from Louisiana's 6th congressional district, and Rob Manness, a retired military officer from Madisonville, who carries backing of elements of the Tea Party movement.^[3]

Background

Paul Hollis was born in Metairie in Jefferson Parish, the third son of Judy and Ken Hollis. He graduated in 1990 from Grace King High School in Metairie and served as student body president.

Hollis held his first job – for a lawn care service – at the age of thirteen and worked through high school as a restaurant busboy. After studying martial arts for many years, he attained his black belt in karate and began teaching at Elmwood Fitness Center before his senior year.

At Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, Hollis opened his first small business, a karate school. He received a degree in political science from LSU in 1994.

Paul met Ashley Tastet in 1996, and they married a few years later. In 2003, Paul and Ashley Hollis had their daughter, Bree, and in 2006 the family settled near Mandeville in St. Tammany Parish. In 2013, Paul and Ashley had their second child, son Zachary.

Business

Hollis began collecting coins in 1978, at the age of six, when he received a Peace dollar from a grandmother.^[4]He still has the keepsake coin.

Hollis was employed by as the youngest salesperson at Blanchard and Company of New Orleans, one of the nation's largest rare coin and precious metal firms. He worked there until 2001, when he attained the position of "numismatist" or coin expert.

In 2003, Hollis started his own firm, Paul Hollis Rare Coins, supplying collectible coins to television home shopping networks located in Tennessee and Minnesota. Paul Hollis Rare Coins now specializes in ancient coins that circulated during the earthly lifetime of Jesus Christ.

Hollis is one of the few numismatists to visit and undertake an in-depth of study of each of the United States Mints. He has achieved status of expert in treasure coins, often being interviewed by national and international media outlets.

In the winter of 2004, Hollis joined the Odyssey Marine Exploration to salvage coins from the SS Republic (1853).^[5]

In 2009, Hollis gave 1,000,000 Lincoln cents.^[6] He also gave 1,050 Adams dollars to students at the middle school he attended, John Quincy Adams Middle School.^[7]

In 2008, Hollis notably arranged for and escorted the 1844-0 Proof $10 Eagle, worth $2.5 million, to be on display at the Old U.S. Mint of the Louisiana State Museum in Baton Rouge.^[8] This allowed twenty thousand persons to see the coin where it was minted,

Legislative career

Hollis was elected to the Louisiana House in November 2011. His District 104 was newly redrawn as a result of the legislative redistricting plan, Act 1 of the 1st Extraordinary Session of 2011, signed into law by Governor Bobby Jindal on April 14, 2011.^[9] The district covers parts of the St. Tammany Parish communities of Mandeville, Abita Springs, Covington, Lacombe, Pearl River, and Slidell.^[10]

During his first year in office, Hollis was part of the Louisiana Bicentennial Task Force and assisted with an exhibit at the Old State Capitol and the writing and production of the "History of Banking and Finance in Louisiana" in cooperation with the Secretary of State's office.

Hollis serves on the Commerce, Education, and Retirement committees.^[1]

Writing career

Hollis is the author of the book American Numismatist, written for the American Numismatic Association. He traces U.S. history through the coins that were struck along the way. With many significant pictures and images of coins, the book is considered a resource to help beginners learn the trade.^[11]

John Albanese, one of the world's top-ranked coin graders, wrote a forward to Hollis book.^[12]

Acknowledgments

Hollis has received the:

• Business Champion Award from Southwest Louisiana Economic Development Alliance^[13]

• A 97 percent rating from the Louisiana Association of Business and IndustryABI^[14]

• Outstanding Family Advocate from the Louisiana Family Forum^[15]

• Best U.S. Coin Book 2012 award for American Numismatist

Hollis has recently been nominated by Speaker of the Louisiana House of Representatives Chuck Kleckley to serve as a member of the Louisiana Commission on Marriage and Family. He is also a member of the newly formed Gulf Coast Legislative Council.

References

External links

• Official website
• Rep. Paul Hollis at the Louisiana House of Representatives
• Biography, voting record, and interest group ratings at Project Vote Smart
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission