Will Koch: President of Holiday World Dies at Age 48

by Amy Judd | June 14, 2010 at 12:50 pm

666 views | 0 Recommendations | 0 comments

Will Koch - Holiday World President Dies at Age 48

Will Koch died on Sunday June 13 at his home in Indiana of what his family believes was complications to his diabetes according to the Associated Press. He was 48 years old.

Koch was the CEO of Holiday World & Splashin' Safari, which is a very popular amusement and water park located close to the town of Santa Claus in Indiana. Holiday World is now one of the region's most popular attractions and it was all started by his grandfather who thought a town called Santa Claus should have somewhere for children to play.

Due to the name 'Santa Claus' the park stated around a Christmas theme, but has grown over the years to include sections about all holidays. The water park opened in 1993 and has continued to grow ever since.

Holiday World spokeswoman Paula Werne says the park will be open Monday and that it will continue to be owned and operated by the Koch family.

When asked about Holiday World's family approach to entertainment, Will Koch told Entrepreneur.com:

"All I kept hearing from other park owners was 'Are you nuts?'" he recalls. "It's an amazing feeling to take a risk and have it turn out to be such a winner--both in the industry, and more importantly with our guests."

Watch Some Videos of People Visiting Holiday World (Turn Your Volume Down)