John Holer

John Holer (born Ivan Holer; August 15, 1935 – June 23, 2018) was a Slovenian-Canadian businessman. An immigrant to Canada, Holer is most notable for founding Marineland of Canada in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. He founded the park in the early 1960s and managed it until his death in 2018.

Early life Holer was born in Žice, a village in Slovenia, then part of Yugoslavia. The "Marine Wonderland and Animal Farm" opened in 1961. Holer had welded two large steel tanks together and brought in three sea lions and charged one quarter for admission and another to feed the animals. In 2004, Holer purchased a trailer park neighboring Marineland, and in 2009 evicted all 47 families living there.

Death Holer died on June 23, 2018, aged 82. He was praised as an "immigrant success story" by Senator Don Plett (Manitoba). Holer had been seriously ill for five months, and died at his home on Chippawa Parkway.

Holer's wife of 46 years, Marie, died in 2024. They are survived by their son, Peter. Another son, John Mark Jr., died in 2013. Marineland was operated by 'Holer Family Amusements', a company founded by his family after he died, from 2018 to 2024 and has ceased operations and been held in trust since Marie Holer's death in 2024. Since 2024, Marineland has been in the process of seeking approval to transfer its wildlife to other facilities, mortgaging its undeveloped land, and subdividing its property for redevelopment. In 2026, a number of the ocean mammals were transferred to aquariums in Spain and United States.