Sara Holland McBride

Sara Holland McBride passed away on November 20, 2025 in Raleigh, North Carolina, at the age of 97.

Born Sara Leach Holland in Bladen County, NC, in 1928, she was the daughter of Ione M. (McClure) Holland and Roy Wendell Holland. Her family lived on a farm on the Cape Fear River before moving to Raleigh when she was a young child. Sara graduated from Needham B. Broughton High School before earning her A.B. Degree in Psychology in 1950 from Woman's College of the University of North Carolina (now UNC Greensboro).

In 1951, she married Harold Sanderson Neal, with whom she had two children, Elizabeth and Gregory. Sara relocated to Highland Park, Texas, in 1958, where she resided for 63 years. In 1980, she married Robert "Bob" Bruce McBride III at Church of the Incarnation, where she was a long-time member.

In retirement, Sara was a devoted volunteer at the Dallas Public Library's genealogy department, the North Dallas Shared Ministries, and served as a docent at Dallas' Old City Park. She and Bob shared a great love for travel, were avid tennis players, and enjoyed frequent dinners with friends at the Park City Club.

Sara was preceded in death by her husband, Robert "Bob" Bruce McBride III; her sister, Margaret Holland Adams; and her grandson, Preston Kemp Slaton.

She is survived by her daughter, Elizabeth Holland Trufant of Asheville, NC; her son, Gregory Sanderson Neal of Raleigh, NC; her two grandchildren, Paul Tanner Slaton and Sarah Slaton Carney; four great-grandchildren; and her brother, Roy Calvin Holland of Charlotte, NC. Sara also leaves behind numerous nieces and nephews.