FORT WORTH – William Travis Harkins went to be with the Lord on Monday, December 28, 2015. Service: 2 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2016 at Mayfield Kiser Funeral Home Chapel. Memorials: In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in his name to a rescue shelter at www.marsrescue.org Travis was born on November 28, 1947 in Del Rio to Ernest and Doris Harkins. Travis grew up in Sanderson, Texas where he excelled in both academics and sports. In high school, he and his doubles partner went to state. He graduated from The University of Texas where he earned a degree in Biology and Physical Education. Throughout his life, he remained an avid Longhorn supporter. Travis spent several years teaching and coaching. Later, he joined his family in their hog business in Sanderson. Eventually he went to work for Albertsons, where he worked his way up to the manager of the scanning department. He was a loyal employee of Albertsons for 33 years. Generous and loving by nature, he was one of the top plasma donors for Carter Blood Care. Travis never met a stranger and he always had a smile and something witty to share with everyone he came into contact with. If you were having a bad day, you could always count on Travis to cheer you up. He was loved by so many and brought joy to those in his life. Travis loved his family and his dogs Cash and Taco, and his cat Lizzie. Travis was preceded in death by his twin brother, Harry, his father Ernest Harkins, grandparents Jessie and Carl Cochran and Ernest Harkins Sr. and Della Mae Harkins. Survivors: He is survived and will be deeply missed by his wife, Mary, his son, Chad, both of Fort Worth; his mother, Doris Harkins, sister Nancy Pusley and husband Mack, niece Jenny Hale and husband Tim, all of Del Rio; and niece Hailey Kemp and husband Jason of Pflugerville. He is also survived by numerous great nieces, nephews and many cousins.
57 Responses
Thank you Travis for all of your knowledge and help during my scanning years with Albertsons. You will truely be missed by all.
I had the privilege of working with Travis at Andrews Middle School for 6 years. He was an excellent teacher and coach. He was a hard worker and was always prepared as a teacher. We floated the Rio Grande (Santa Elena Canyon together). He was a true friend and I am glad our paths crossed along the way. God bless his family and Blessed be his memory.
J. Mark Wallace
Thank you Travis for all of your knowledge and help during my scanning years with Albertsons. You will truely be missed by all.
Gone too soon favorite Uncle Trav.
Gone too soon favorite Uncle Trav.
Travis, you were such a ham in CAP class with Albertsons! He was always talking about pigs, so it is nice to know he knew what he was talking about! I’ve been with Albertsons over 30 years and he was there working seemingly day and night. He will definitely be missed by me, but also by the other countless employees. RIP Travis! Sending my condolences to his mother, wife, and son. May God be with you as you deal with everything. Love and prayers, Dawn.
Travis, you were such a ham in CAP class with Albertsons! He was always talking about pigs, so it is nice to know he knew what he was talking about! I’ve been with Albertsons over 30 years and he was there working seemingly day and night. He will definitely be missed by me, but also by the other countless employees. RIP Travis! Sending my condolences to his mother, wife, and son. May God be with you as you deal with everything. Love and prayers, Dawn.
Travis, words cannot express the sorrow that I have been feeling since I heard the news. You were always one of the “good guys”. Gone too soon….
Travis, words cannot express the sorrow that I have been feeling since I heard the news. You were always one of the “good guys”. Gone too soon….
I will remember the visits we had while I lived in Eldorado, Texas and would go to Sonora Texas where he lived, to shop. Getting to sit and enjoy his wit all alone was priceless.
My regards to the family in their sorrow.
I will remember the visits we had while I lived in Eldorado, Texas and would go to Sonora Texas where he lived, to shop. Getting to sit and enjoy his wit all alone was priceless.
My regards to the family in their sorrow.
My condolences to the family. For the little time I knew him in Sanderson he was a good man.
My condolences to the family. For the little time I knew him in Sanderson he was a good man.
When you was taking the place of Rufus you still were laughing. God blessed me with you.
When you was taking the place of Rufus you still were laughing. God blessed me with you.
Thank you Travis, for all you taught me. I was privileged to be able to work with you in Midland during to “beginning of scanning.” He was my boss and mentor for almost 30 years until my store sold in 2014. I’ll still go by his 3F’s philosophy– find it, fix it, and forget it. He was a wonderful boss, and seemingly a great husband and father. He always told us about his wife, his son, and his pets.
You will be greatly missed, Travis. Rest in peace my friend.
Thank you Travis, for all you taught me. I was privileged to be able to work with you in Midland during to “beginning of scanning.” He was my boss and mentor for almost 30 years until my store sold in 2014. I’ll still go by his 3F’s philosophy– find it, fix it, and forget it. He was a wonderful boss, and seemingly a great husband and father. He always told us about his wife, his son, and his pets.
You will be greatly missed, Travis. Rest in peace my friend.
Our thoughts and prayers are with the family…..
Our thoughts and prayers are with the family…..
I remember you, when I was a child, growing up in Sanderson. You always had a smile on your face, and were so kind and witty. May you rest in peace, Travis. And may the Lord bless your whole family with peace and comfort during these most difficult of times.
I remember you, when I was a child, growing up in Sanderson. You always had a smile on your face, and were so kind and witty. May you rest in peace, Travis. And may the Lord bless your whole family with peace and comfort during these most difficult of times.
My condolences to the Harkins Family in this difficult time . My prayers are with you . May he rest in peace .
My condolences to the Harkins Family in this difficult time . My prayers are with you . May he rest in peace .
Travis came to Fort Stockton I believe in1976 or 77 as a teacher coach where I had the privalage of getting to know him as a coach. He treated you fairly and with respect, I often thought about him since I still live in Fort Stockton and agree with the earlier post he was taken to soon.
Travis came to Fort Stockton I believe in1976 or 77 as a teacher coach where I had the privalage of getting to know him as a coach. He treated you fairly and with respect, I often thought about him since I still live in Fort Stockton and agree with the earlier post he was taken to soon.
Travis,
I only saw you in the distance at a meeting once we merged. I have been with Tom Thumb all together for 26 years. I admire you and your 33 years of service to Albertson’s! Even though I never met you personally I have only been told positive and happy memories of you…like that you never had a bad day and you were always up beat! In an ever so changing fast paced world to remain the same is an amazing thing, in fact that’s one of my favorite quotes from Ralf Waldo’s-Emerson…I am truly sorry that in a changing world things were missed. I pray for healing, peace and Love for your wife and children especially! To all his extended family, friends and co-workers take from this we should Love and Cherish each other every moment because none of us are promised tomorrow. Dear Lord, please wrap your arms around this family along with our company and guide us in the healing process and in the coming days give us the strength to endure all the pain in your name we pray-Amen
Travis,
I only saw you in the distance at a meeting once we merged. I have been with Tom Thumb all together for 26 years. I admire you and your 33 years of service to Albertson’s! Even though I never met you personally I have only been told positive and happy memories of you…like that you never had a bad day and you were always up beat! In an ever so changing fast paced world to remain the same is an amazing thing, in fact that’s one of my favorite quotes from Ralf Waldo’s-Emerson…I am truly sorry that in a changing world things were missed. I pray for healing, peace and Love for your wife and children especially! To all his extended family, friends and co-workers take from this we should Love and Cherish each other every moment because none of us are promised tomorrow. Dear Lord, please wrap your arms around this family along with our company and guide us in the healing process and in the coming days give us the strength to endure all the pain in your name we pray-Amen
Travis was the first friend we made when we moved to Sanderson. His smile and laugh was certainly contagious. He will be missed by so many people who loved him. Thank you, Travis, for being such a good person.
Dennis & Angela Brown
Travis was the first friend we made when we moved to Sanderson. His smile and laugh was certainly contagious. He will be missed by so many people who loved him. Thank you, Travis, for being such a good person.
Dennis & Angela Brown
Travis was truly one of a kind. It was a privilege to know him and a pleasure to work with him. Travis made this world a better place.
Travis
He was a “one of a kind man” dedicated to his family, his dogs, his work, and Texas. ♡
Kind, yet thorough.
I was privileged to know him these past 15 years. Last time we emailed, which was just a few months ago.
He had just completed the conversion of stores to the Safeway IBM systems. In our last email he said “it is not Goodbye good friend, it is until we meet again” and I am going to hold you to that Travis.
THANK YOU for being YOU!
Thank you to the family for sharing that special tribute video.
God Bless you Travis, and all your family and friends
One of the most brilliant and intuitive problem solvers I’ve known my entire career. He had a wry sense of humor and was a good man. He will be missed as an individual, as a dedicated employee and as a kind soul that made it easier for the rest of us to find hope. Rest easy.
May God’s peace and love hold you, Harkins Family.
Much love to all of you.
My thoughts and prayers are with the Harkins family. I met Travis when I first starting working for Albertsons in Midland, Texas in 1982. I always enjoyed our talks. He will surely be missed by all who knew him.
Heaven gained an angel. My condolences to all the family
Condolences to the family. He was my friend and co worker. Even though we were states away we ran into each other quite often with Albertsons.
Travis, we will all be with you someday.
I met Travis theough Carter BloodCare after I transferred to the Hulen Donor Center in 2004, and what a blessing he was to all of the staff that he came in contact with over the years. He was always so willing to donate as soon as he was eligible. He was one of the most faithful platelet donors we had. No matter what was going on or how bad anyone felt, when Travis came through that door, everything changed because he was such a positive person and we all felt better for having the opportunity to get to know him. I enjoyed just standing by the donor bed talking to him and listening to him talk about his family and his pets. Travis was also referred to as the UT donor!! I thank God for the opportunity to have been a part of his commitment to the community and calling him my friend!! God bless the family during their loss!!
Travis,
God has welcomed you to his Kingdom. I forever will remember and cherish all of the time we spent together. We were both the “Midland Texas” boys that stuck with it and worked our way up with Albertsons. I will keep your fire and passion of the Business going! Your Team respected you so Much because in your Eyes it was always about our People. Simple thoughts I will always keep near and dear in my heart! God Bless You My Friend! My thoughts and prayers for your Family! Love You Travis! David
So sad…what a great boss he was. You’ll be greatly missed Travis.Prayers to your family during this most difficult time. RIP
Travis,
A true gentlemen who always found time to help his fellow coworkers whatever the problem or issue. You will truly be missed. I for one remember meeting Travis back in July of 1992 when he help our MAX Team set up pricing for our new MAX Division. Travis not only had his daytime job but he was always available to help Caryn set up our new MAX Division. Travis was Leader, had lots of passion, his integrity was second to none, came to work everyday and worked hard to get the job done and was a true people person, always ready to help. Travis you will be missed.
God Bless
Dennis
Thank you Travis for being there for me doing my scanning years with albertson you will be miss
Though I’ve not been around Travis in 15 years, I will always remember him as being a kind and genuine person. He was always positive and encouraging no matter the situation and I’ll always remember him as one of my favorite supervisors at Albertsons. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends.
My thoughts, Sympathy and heartfelt prayers go out to the family. He was one of the cornerstones of this office and he always told it like it was. He always said “find it, fix it and forget it.” Basically find the problem, correct it and then don’t beat yourself up about it as many of us are our own harshest critics. He had an action filled life and I smile every time that I think of him and I will think of him for a long time to come.
Always enjoyed Travis coming over to the warehouse to check labels. He always had a smile to carry with him and to share it with you. I enjoyed our many conversations about life in general. He will be missed.
My thoughts and prayers are with Travis’s family and friends during this trying time. Travis was my dear friend and I will miss him greatly –
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family for the loss of Travis. Anybody that new Travis will feel this loss, Travis was such a people person,intergrity was such a strength, he always fought for what was right. Travis and I first met in 1984 when I moved to San Antonio and it was in the days of first starting up all the new scan equipment. Travis was one of those type people you always wanted him next to you during tough times because he could find solutions quickly, Oh, I can’t forget all the presentations Travis made with all of his pig jokes and how they compared to life in general.
Travis had the attitude of “Can Do” on every turn he made in the business world. We worked together for the next 20 something years, and it was a such a pleasure being around him. Travis loved his wife,Mary, so much. His hobby was his dogs and he did love walking those dogs.
Travis made a positive mark on all of our lives and he will be remember as a wonderful person , he will be missed .
My thoughts and prayers are with Travis’s family. His kindness will always be remembered and building the house for Habitat for Humanity always makes me remember Travis. We will miss you Travis.
travis will surely be missed. My wife and I would run into Travis and Mary at Cousin’s BBQ on
McCart and we’d brag on the Aggies and he’d
brag on the Horn’s and then we’d all laugh and enjoy our meal. Once you met Travis you felt like
you’d known him for years. He had such a friendly ness about him. Arturo and Claria Narez from Cousin”s send their condolences along with Virginia and mine. God bless you and your family
Mary.
I’ve had the privilege of meeting Travis once in person when he inexpectly visited the Albertsons store in Alexandria,La We spoke numerous times over the phone and he taught me a lot about my position as a Scan Coordinator When a problem arose I could always trust that Travis would help me out Since our company conversion I hadn’t spoke with Travis for a couple months and such sad news of his passing My Sincere Condolensence to his Family RIP Travis
Gone; but not forgotten! Forever in our hearts!
Sending my condolences. I will pass this news on to others that may not have heard.
Travis — God has welcomed you home. May His peace and rest be yours. When I started with Albertsons in 1993 you were so kind and had the best smile and laugh. I will remember that smile always. May those who remain take comfort that we will see you again. Blessings and prayers are being lifted up for your family and friends.
My heart is extremely heavy knowing that such a beautiful person has been lost to us all. Travis was a rare soul that impacted everyone he ever met in a positive way. I had to call Travis for help at work all the time. He always told me that the only stupid questions were the ones not asked. He was such an awesome teacher and so gifted at making others feel good about themselves. You will be missed greatly dear friend.
We knew Travis from his favorite Chicken place, he was pretty religious about seeing us on Saturdays. God Bless you Travis, you are already sorely missed. We pray for you and the family. Mary, If we can help in any way, please reach out to Charles or myself. Please!
To his Family and Friends
We met Travis when he traveled to Jewel-Osco in Chicago to help us through yet another system conversion. Although he wasn’t here for a long period, he left an impression in all of us that will not be forgotten.
He talked about his wife, family and Texas as we took him to visit some of our stores throughout the city. We could not help but compare the two and boast about each other’s home town.
I am saddened to hear of his passing. I wanted to take this time to let you know how much we cared for Travis here in the windy city. He was every bit the sweet, non-swearing, funny guy everyone says he was.
I hope that you find comfort in the good memories you created with him. Rest in peace Travis
I am just hearing this news& I am in complete shock. May God comfort his family & so many friends that he had, I worked under his guidance from 1987–2009. I am so sad on his passing. I wish there was something more I could say. RIP ! Travis, job here on Earth is complete, may your Heavenly Father guide you through eternal life.
Travis was a kind a d honest man. He had a gift for making those around him feel special, and and always had a smile to share.
May God hold his family in his hands, and grant them peace.