Travis “Art” Tapia

May 1, 1935 - January 12, 2021

Art’s passing leaves a hole in the hearts of many. He lost his beloved son, Lalo, in 2008 but is survived by a large loving family, including his wife, Andrea, and children, Albert, Eddie, Rick, Maria, Michelle, Marcos, John, and Adam and their families He was the patriarch of 5 generations that include 36 grandchildren. His family was his truest joy in life, especially the littlest ones. They always made him smile.

Art was 15 years old when he came to San Francisco from San Antonio, TX with his family. He attended Mission High, then worked at Kelly’s Grocery in the Marina where he lived and started his family while attending SF State. In 1968, at the age of 33, he joined the San Francisco Police Department and served for 30 years, retiring in 1998 as a lieutenant. By then, he and his second family were living in Novato where he spent his final 27 years.

His police career began at the Ingleside District station where one of his first assignments put him on the law enforcement side of Vietnam War protestors, many of whom he’d known at State. He was quick to establish rapport with them in his new role and was an asset in keeping the peace at those demonstrations. He then paired up with his first partner, Joe Williams and they became the “school cops” at Balboa High. To this day, many of those kids and their families remember the black and brown duo fondly. Art made it a point to talk with them, to take them to their parents rather than to juvenile, and to care as a human being even though he wore a uniform. From there, he moved on to Community Relations where his mission became clear. It was a tumultuous time both in and out of the department and with the support of strong and committed leaders, he found his niche. It was in helping the disempowered and righting the wrongs of police brutality and inequality in hiring. He willingly took on some unpopular positions and did not waiver in his dedication to them. He was getting himself into a bit of “good trouble” in those days and it suited him perfectly. He became a proud member of the Officers for Justice and was elected their 4th president; he was the only non-black person to ever hold that office. It was during that time that the Consent Decree was signed by then-Mayor Feinstein paving the way for minorities and women to be hired and to move up the ranks of the department.

Art worked with minority youth gangs and could go anywhere in the City. He helped negotiate with them to cool tempers and keep the peace. He went to teen dances and stayed around afterward to be sure nothing bad spilled over into the community. And he joined boards of non-profits to better assist with things like playground equipment for kids, jobs for teens, and after-school programs for ‘tweens. Coleman Advocates was one of Art’s longest and closest affiliations. He was inspired by their work and especially by their founding members.

Sadly, the unit was disbanded by political forces in the late ‘80s. Art was transferred to the Richmond (as a Sgt) and later to the Tenderloin Task Force (as Lt). His reputation preceded him wherever he went. One of his officers at the Tenderloin laughingly called him a “friend to the friendless” – he liked that. But, without fail, his colleagues always ended up respecting him immensely, some even admiring his strong, quiet style. And they let him know it in so many ways. This was particularly gratifying after some years of struggle.

He loved being retired in Novato (he called it “the country”) and working at Novato High with teens and families from other lands and customs. He was back to his own roots and they loved him. One of those “kids” even helped with his home care toward the end. “An honor”, he said. And he was glad to be around his youngest 2 sons, who were also NHS students at the time. He spent a lot of time involved in their activities, including academics, sports & music.

He was a voracious reader and a lover of history and politics and crossword puzzles. And for all his life, he enjoyed doing these things in little coffee shops. He was a Bob Dylan aficionado and a poet in his own right. He spoke 4 languages fluently. He was able to travel a bit and was quite moved by a visit to his father’s childhood home in Mexico in 2004. And everywhere he went, he connected with people – and they with him. He got a lot of satisfaction from the beauty he created in and around our house with his skill saw and his patience. And he was kind, always. Art was intelligent and street smart; a runner and a body-builder; a bad ass and a teddy bear. And he cared, really cared. Art’s was a life well-lived. We buried Art Tapia on January 20, 2021; it was Biden’s Inauguration day. Nice touch. And the sun shone particularly brightly on all of us that day as we said our final good-byes.