• TikTok
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • Star Wars Kids
Star Wars Logo

Search

My Account Logout
  • More More
    • NEWS + FEATURES
      • THE LATEST
      • ANDOR
      • CELEBRATION
      • QUIZZES + POLLS
      • BOOKS + COMICS
    • VIDEO
      • ALL VIDEO
      • THIS WEEK! IN STAR WARS
    • FILMS
    • SERIES
      • All Series
      • Andor
      • Skeleton Crew
      • Ahsoka
      • The Mandalorian
    • GAMES + INTERACTIVE
      • View All
      • Star Wars Outlaws
      • Games + Apps
      • VR + Immersive
    • DATABANK
      • ALL DATABANK
      • GALAXY MAP
      • ERAS
    • DISNEY+
      • STREAM NOW
      • EXPLORE
      • THE DISNEY BUNDLE
Local Nav | Drop-Down Phase III - 20231020
Local Nav | Drop-Down Phase III - 20231020
My Account Logout
  • other
  • instagram
  • twitter
  • facebook
  • youtube
  • other
STAR WARS | DISNEY+ STAR WARS ON DISNEY+

All

  • Andor
  • Rogue One
  • Series
  • Films
  • Disney+
  • Games + Apps
  • Books + Comics
  • Merchandise
  • LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy
  • Visions
  • The Mandalorian
  • Ahsoka
  • Skeleton Crew
  • The Acolyte
  • Obi-Wan Kenobi
  • The Book of Boba Fett
  • The Bad Batch
  • The Clone Wars
  • Interviews
  • Collecting
  • Creativity
  • Disney Parks
  • Events
  • Fans + Community
  • LEGO Star Wars
  • Lucasfilm
  • Quizzes + Polls
  • Recipes
  • Star Wars Rebels
  • Star Wars Celebration
  • The High Republic
Fans + Community
Interviews
StarWars.com Fan Spotlight: Holly

StarWars.com Fan Spotlight: Holly

Meet the fan who turned her love of Star Wars into a stellar career at NASA.

Kelly Knox
Kelly Knox
July 6, 2021

Meet the fan who turned her love of Star Wars into a stellar career at NASA.

StarWars.com is shining a light on those who truly give the saga its power: the fans. In the StarWars.com Fan Spotlight, we’re honored to tell their stories.

Holly Griffith set her sights on the stars when she was a little girl. Growing up in the 1980s, Star Wars was a huge part of her life thanks to family and friends who adored it just as much as she did. Holly knew at an early age that she wanted to be Princess Leia when she grew up. She realized that working at NASA was the closest she could get to the stars in our own galaxy, and she worked hard to make her dream come true.

Years later, Holly is still a super fan of our beloved General Organa and continues to reach for the stars at NASA. And it all started with Star Wars.

“All of my friends and neighbors and cousins around my age were HUGE fans,” she tells StarWars.com of her earliest memories. “We would always play Star Wars when we visited each other. I had really long brown hair, and one of my aunts would make me Leia buns every time I’d go over. The first Star Wars movie that I saw in theaters was Return of the Jedi.”

Leia has always been her favorite character.

Holly Griffith

“Leia was the first woman I’d seen in a movie like Star Wars with a role like that,” Holly says. “She was a leader and she just…belonged, like anyone else, and it wasn’t unusual. That was so inspiring to me.”

Holly followed Leia’s journey from princess to general as she forged her own path through life. “I think she stayed true to herself until the end,” she says of Leia. “She understood the importance of fighting for what’s right and that people like her, who have a voice and who wield influence, are vital to the causes that they believe in.”

Holly Griffith's Star Wars room

An entire room in Holly’s house is dedicated to the rebel leader. (“It didn’t start out that way, but it kind of evolved into all of the Leia things,” she says with a laugh.) Colorful posters, fan art, and Funko Pop!s adorn the walls and shelves overflow with Princess Leia toys and figures. Even the rug on the floor pays homage to Star Wars.

A bold “Leijorettes” banner also hangs in the wall of Holly’s themed room. A play on the word majorette, the Leijorettes are a group of enthusiastic fans who regularly honor both Princess Leia and Carrie Fisher.

“We march in the Krewe of Chewbacchus every year for Mardi Gras in New Orleans,” Holly says. “Peter Mayhew even joined and paraded with us one year. We made international news when we held a traditional New Orleans Second Line for Carrie Fisher after she passed.”

Holly’s advice to other girls and young women who want to follow in her footsteps to NASA sounds like wisdom from Princess Leia herself.

“Don’t give up and never stop asking,” Holly says. “Engineering is an exciting field right now, but you never know what opportunities could open for you if you don’t ask. And never stop trying!”

The StarWars.com Fan Spotlight Q&A

What’s your favorite Star Wars memory?

Holly: Visiting Skywalker Ranch! That was wild!

Leia Organa hiding aboard the Tantive IV

Would you join the Resistance or First Order?

Holly: Resistance. Can’t let Leia down!

If you could fly or drive any Star Wars vehicle, which would it be?

Holly: An A-wing. Those were always my favorite in games, like the original X-Wing. They’re fast!

Yoda

Which Star Wars character would you want as a roommate?

Holly: Yoda. He’s patient, gives good advice, and he can cook.

If you could have any job in the Star Wars galaxy -- Jedi, Sith, Death Star janitor, rancor keeper, whatever you want -- what would it be?

Holly: A spy for the Rebel Alliance!

  • These aren't the droids you're looking for - Disney+

Kelly Knox writes features and DIYs for StarWars.com. Her writing can also be seen on Marvel, DC Comics, IGN, and more. Follow her on Twitter at @kelly_knox to talk Star Wars, games, and crafts.

Site tags: #StarWarsBlog, #FanInterviews

Related Topics

Interviews StarWars.com Fan Spotlight Leia Organa (Star Wars)

Related Stories

  • StarWars.com Fan Spotlight: Keith Yarde Is a Star Wars Fan Like His Father, Kerwin, Before Him
    [object Object] [object Object]

    StarWars.com Fan Spotlight: Keith Yarde Is a Star Wars Fan Like His Father, Kerwin, Before Him

    June 15, 2023

    June 15, 2023

    Jun 15

  • Jump to Lightspeed with Road Squadron
    [object Object] [object Object]

    Jump to Lightspeed with Road Squadron

    June 23, 2022

    June 23, 2022

    Jun 23

  • StarWars.com Fan Spotlight: Welcome to Johna and Maria's Geeky Bubble
    [object Object] [object Object]

    StarWars.com Fan Spotlight: Welcome to Johna and Maria's Geeky Bubble

    May 3, 2022

    May 3, 2022

    May 3

  • StarWars.com Fan Spotlight: Rachel
    [object Object] [object Object]

    StarWars.com Fan Spotlight: Rachel

    June 3, 2021

    June 3, 2021

    Jun 3

  • The Vibrant World of Brandon Jackson’s Star Wars Photography
    [object Object] [object Object]

    The Vibrant World of Brandon Jackson’s Star Wars Photography

    October 13, 2020

    October 13, 2020

    Oct 13

  • StarWars.com Fan Spotlight: Montie
    [object Object] [object Object]

    StarWars.com Fan Spotlight: Montie

    July 26, 2019

    July 26, 2019

    Jul 26

  • Fully Operational Fandom: This 17-Foot-Tall AT-AT Would Even Impress the Emperor
    [object Object] [object Object]

    Fully Operational Fandom: This 17-Foot-Tall AT-AT Would Even Impress the Emperor

    March 9, 2018

    March 9, 2018

    Mar 9

  • Galactic Costuming: Emily Schram's Cool Captain Rex Cosplay
    [object Object] [object Object]

    Galactic Costuming: Emily Schram's Cool Captain Rex Cosplay

    January 3, 2018

    January 3, 2018

    Jan 3

More From Star Wars:
  • TikTok
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Youtube
  • SWKids
  • Terms of Use
  • Additional Content Information
  • Privacy Policy
  • Children's Online Privacy Policy
  • Your US State Privacy Rights
  • Disney Store | Star Wars
  • Star Wars Helpdesk
  • Interest-Based Ads
  • Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information

TM & © Lucasfilm Ltd. All Rights Reserved