Olivia Lucia Pacheco "Oly" Beltran

1968 - 2024

Olivia "Oly" Lucia Pacheco Beltran
12/13/1968 - 01/08/2024
"No te dejes vencer por los obstáculos de la vida. Sigue adelante lucha día con día."
"Do not let yourself be defeated by the obstacles of life. Keep moving forward, and fight day after day." - Olivia Beltran
Olivia Lucia Pacheco Beltran was born on December 13th, 1968 in Cuernavaca, Morelos to Eduarada Leobarda Pacheco Balderas (Chamilpa, Morelos) and Abraham Beltran Valenzuela (Arcelia,Guerrero). She was the seventh daughter out of nine children. When she was fifteen she made the perilous trip to migrate to the United States. Olivia graduated from Sir Francis Drake in the late 80s (now known as Archie Williams High). She saw the oppressive treatment of Black and Brown communities in Marin County and began to organize fellow working class residents. Olivia dedicated herself to a lifetime of community change.
The stigma of being a brown-skinned, immigrant and single mother did not deter her from doing what she knew was right. She made an impact in housing justice, immigration, civil rights, and environmental rights. She received recognition for her work from Jared Huffman in the United States Congress, Senator Mike McGuire, Assembly member Marc Levine, and Damon Connolly. But above all, Olivia was beloved by la gente, the people.
Olivia was a woman ahead of her time. She understood the importance of building solidarity across all peoples, in countless communities, and was the most skillful Spanish translator using justice language. She taught youth to be proud of who they truly are and where their ancestors came from. She believed in the beauty of our differences and the power of our unique strengths to build robust support systems.
In a world that tried to strip her of her vibrancy and force her into white-centered "status quo", she maintained a loving aura and connection to madre tierra and all her relations as a revolutionary action.
Olivia was known as a proud Indigenous woman who defied European beauty standards and exemplified self-love. She centered joy as a transformative practice. Olivia could be found dancing at every community or familial gathering, embracing those around her with warm hugs and a beaming smile.
Above all, she was a caring mother devoted to her girls. They were the center of her world, her motivation and her reason for being. Their bond was inseparable, rooted in unconditional love.
Olivia carried a divine purpose while on this earth, and even in her death, she is teaching us the necessity of compassion, the need to understand others' suffering, and how to move through this world in a way that lifts the harshness of oppression.
On January 8th, 2024, she tragically passed away while helping her eldest daughter, who was experiencing a severe mental health crisis. She is survived by both daughters Tonantzyn Beltran (29) and Tonatiuh Beltran (27).
The family would like to thank everyone for their outpouring of love and support.
The Cultural Honoring and Public Memorial Service will be held April 13th, 2024 from 2pm-6pm at Pickleweed Park, 50 Canal St, San Rafael, CA 94901.