Travis Sylvester Wert

WERT, Travis Sylvester - Passed away peacefully in Alamo, CA at the age of 89. Born on September 13, 1916, he was the youngest of three children of John S. and Erma Z. Wert. Beloved husband of 55 years to the late Dolores Wert. Also preceded in death by his sisters La Wava Sveen of Yakima, WA and Twila Reynolds of Palo Alto, CA. Travis, the perfect uncle, leaves his nephews, Menton Sveen (and his wife Georgia) and Kermit Sveen (and his wife Hanna); nieces, Joan Shogren, Janice Reynolds and Janet Sveen; grandnephews, Andrew Sveen, Christofer Sveen, Erik Sveen, Marc Sveen, Michael Sayers, Russell Reynolds and Peter Reynolds; grandnieces, Victoria Hilty and Margery Reynolds and many great-grandnieces and great-grandnephews. Travis also leaves his special friend, Rosalie Perez of Visalia, CA. A graduate from Mt. Vernon Union High School in Washington State and worked for his father at the Mt. Vernon Daily Herald. He attended Cornish College of the Arts in Seattle. He entered military service in 1942 and served in the Army Air Corps on Tinian for most of 1945. After the war he settled in San Francisco where he worked at screenwriting and silkscreen printing. He married Dolores Charpentier in 1946 and they moved to Daly City, CA in 1954. Travis worked for the U.S. Postal Service for 26 years. They retired to Visalia, CA, where they lived until his wife died in 2002. He remained in Visalia until this year, when illness required that he be hospitalized. Travis had hundreds of friends and he stayed in touch with them. He wrote thousands of letters during his lifetime. Kindly, genial and enthusiastic, he never missed a gathering of family or friends. He was known for his quick wit and superb storytelling ability, and his nieces and nephews remember long conversations late into the night about incredibly important subjects. He stayed involved with local theatre groups in San Francisco and Visalia. He was an avid ballroom dancer his whole life, continuing this activity until very recently. He loved music, especially Dixieland jazz and popular music of the 20's, 30's, and 40's. Blessed with a beautiful voice, he sang as a young boy sitting on the piano for silent movies and volunteered his time and his voice singing at convalescent homes both before and after his retirement. A Funeral Service will be held on Sat., October 22, 11am at Olivet Memorial Park Chapel, 1601 Hillside Blvd, Colma, CA. In lieu of cards or flowers, memorial donations may be made to Hospice and Palliative Care of Contra Costa, 3470 Buskirk Ave., Pleasant Hill, CA 94523.