Jerome Tapia

It is with great sorrow that we announce the passing of Jerome Tapia of Pecos, NM, just short of his 53rd birthday, after a four and-a-half year battle with cancer. 

For Jerome, spending time with his big family was his social life. He was always in attendance at the many holiday and significant moment family get-togethers. As a youth he and his next eldest brother Jerald spent many hours riding their horses Sugar & Star in the mountains of Pecos.  As a young man, he became very close with his baby brother Jason, as he brought him along wherever he went. With his brother Jonah, he passed on his knowledge of hunting which incited his brother’s passion to further his hunting skills. Stopping in to enjoy his mother’s green chile chicken enchiladas and chatting with her, on those rare occasions when she was home alone filled his stomach and his soul.  He shared his fandom of the NFL Raiders with his father, brothers Jacob and Jason. He could easily make impressions of others' voices and mannerisms, including the characters from Looney Tunes, which he used in his silliness as a playful daddy.

He and his wife loved going for firewood, hiking, their back-pack trips up to Lake Johnson, and had dreams of spending their later years riding and packing into the mountains by horseback.

As a young man, Jerome enlisted in the army, and continued his service for several years in the National Guard Reserve locally in Santa Fe, NM. Jerome took great pride in his natural gifts as a skilled laborer. His brothers affectionately gave him the nickname “Husky”, due to his quick and efficient use of a chainsaw when cutting firewood, and horalé, could he chop & split wood with an axe!! Of greatest significance to him was his competence as a heavy equipment operator, which he performed with instinctual finesse. If his superiors needed someone to access a challenging spot, they always called Jerome, and knew they could count on him to get the job done well, and safely. He had a strong command of all the components of construction. His wife had confidence that if they ever needed to escape civilization and head up into the mountains, they would be able to build a home and survive. He also had an uncanny knack for auto-mechanics, and performed the majority of maintenance and repairs on his treasured pick-up trucks, and his family’s vehicles.

Most of all Jerome loved being up in the mountains of the Pecos River Canyon, soaking up the soothing energy of nature while hunting, fishing, hiking, horseback riding, and camping, or quite often just sitting in his truck amongst the trees talking to God.

Jerome is preceded in death by his grandparents, Miguel & Pauline Tapia, Nevarez & Susie Armijo, aunt Marylou Chavez, cousin Gabriel Quintana, and sister-in-law Elizabeth Tapia.

Jerome is survived by his parents, Patricio A Tapia and Abbie A Tapia, his brother Jerald Tapia, nieces Ashley Bebow, Mikaela Tapia, & nephew Jace, brother Jacob Tapia, sister-in law Hannah Tapia, nieces Leyla, Lynea, & nephew Darren, brother Jonah Tapia, sister-in-law Cherrie Tapia, nieces Heaven, Keira & Adrina, brother Jason Tapia, & niece Alyssa, his children Zachary Tapia, Mariah Johnson (Tapia), Yevette Tapia, Devina Tapia, & Cielo Tapia, his wife Karen Anderson, his Padrino, Joe Tapia, and many many other aunts, uncles, & cousins. 

Services will be held Saturday December 16th, at St Anthony’s Parish Church in Pecos, NM.

10am Rosary, 11am Funeral Mass. Burial to follow immediately afterwards at el Macho Church & Cemetary (8.3 miles up Hwy 63 from St. Anthony’s).