ForeverMissed
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Never was there a more loving and honorable man than Arturo Alfonso Jacobs, age 87, who died September 5, 2022, in Edmonds, Washington. He was born in Laredo, Texas, on May 28, 1935, to José C Jacobs and Adelfa (García) Jacobs and graduated from Laredo’s Martin High School in 1952. He served two years in the U.S. Army 1954-56, during which he was stationed in Germany for 18 months. Arturo earned a BBA at the University of Texas at Austin (1958) and an MBA at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio (1973). His career with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) began in 1958. In 1981, the IRS Executive Board selected Arturo as the first Director of the then-new Houston District of IRS (1981-1992). Previously, he was IRS Director for Washington State (1978-1981), New Mexico (1975-1978), and Assistant Director in Louisiana (1974-75). In 1991, President George H.W. Bush presented Arturo with the Meritorious Executive Award, one of the highest awards the President of the United States can give a government executive. Arturo also received the IRS’ highest national honor, the IRS Commissioner’s Award, in 1988 and 1992. He was everyone’s “favorite boss” for a demonstrated commitment in words and actions to his employees and the communities he served.

After 33 years of service in the IRS, Arturo retired in 1992 and became an international tax consultant. For more than 25 years, he provided tax administration guidance to governments of more than 30 countries around the world on tax reform projects financed by the World Bank, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID); the Inter-American Development Bank; and the U.S. Treasury Department.

Arturo is survived by the love of his life, his wife of 62 years, Belinda, a retired school teacher who often accompanied him on his consulting travels around the world. Other survivors, whom he adored with all his heart (and who loved him back, beyond measure), include son René Jacobs (Betty); daughter Diana Noble (Russ); five grandchildren: Taylor (Tay) Noble; Adam Noble; Sierra Noble, Dylan Jacobs and Isaiah Jacobs; daughter-in-law MarLisa Jacobs; step-grandchildren Melanie Ayers and Joseph Kulakowski; great-granddaughter, Cora Noble; brother, José Jacobs Jr of Laredo as well as numerous other cherished relatives. He was preceded in death by his oldest son, Arturo Jacobs, Jr., brother David Jacobs and sister Dolores Hall.

All the positive adjectives in the world couldn’t adequately convey the beauty of Arturo’s spirit, his gentle and generous nature, wisdom, empathy, humor, patience, kindness, integrity and tender heart. His legacy will live on in all those whom he knew and loved. Arturo’s Seattle family will host a private dinner in his honor. In lieu of flowers, you may donate in his name to the Texas Exes (University of Texas) Hispanic Alumni Network Scholarship Fund at: https://www.texasexes.org/chapters-and-networks/find-chapter-or-network/149/hispanic-alumni.
September 6, 2023
September 6, 2023
Lito, I miss you terribly. How many people can truly say that their father-in-law was such a positive role model and an inspiration in their life? You were so wise, well-read and accomplished, yet so humble. You were kind to everyone. I am so blessed to have had you in my life.
I love eternally, Russ
September 6, 2023
September 6, 2023
There aren’t words to describe the holes in our hearts you have left behind. All the little things remind me of you, Lito.

An older gentleman played Cielito Lindo on his guitar at the Waterfront Center the other day, and I immediately burst into tears and sang along. He then invited me up to sing and with him, and I told him about you and our love of singing together. Thank you for everything, but especially for instilling your love of music in me. I will do my best to keep the musical legacy alive.
September 5, 2023
September 5, 2023
Dad, not a day goes by that I don't think about you. My grief is like a constant throbbing; it waxes and wanes but never leaves. There's still part of me that can't believe you're gone. I can hear your laugh, feel your hug, remember your warmth. Your integrity and moral compass were admired by all, professionally and personally. Your love, compassion and generosity touched us daily and left an imprint on our hearts. Your grandchildren feel your spirit within them.

I am left trying to live up to your example. Whenever I have a negative thought or feel tempted to do something I might regret later, I think of you. You never had an unkind word about anyone! You did the right thing even in the hardest of circumstances. When I was little, I wanted to be just like you. Nothing has changed, even with your passing, but we lost you too soon.
September 5, 2023
September 5, 2023
Anyone as lovely as this kind man was betters all he touched, nurtured and trained. I can hear his life music when I hear the legacy voices of his daughter and grand daughter. Angel wings to you Sir.
May 28, 2023
May 28, 2023
Happy birthday Lito. Not a day passes without thinking of you and the legacy you left for our family. Thank you for being such an amazing role model.
December 15, 2022
December 15, 2022
My condolences to Arturo's family. He was a great IRS executive leader at IRS. I first met him when while he was the Director for New Mexico and sought out his advice around diversity. A big loss to the world!
September 30, 2022
September 30, 2022
With very fond memories of all good times spent with Arturo and Belinda. Both Dolores & I have nothing but great memories of the kindness and desire to help always expressed by Arturo. Arturo was always a perfect gentleman in every sense of the word and will be greatly missed by all who ever came in contact with him in any way. We express our condolences to Belinda and the rest of the family. I know that Arturo will Rest In Peace because of the kind of life he led. 

Martin & Dolores Cuellar
September 16, 2022
September 16, 2022
Lito, I have shed many tears of sorrow and joy, thinking about how fortunate I was to have you as my second father. I met your daughter when I was 18 years old. When we married you welcomed me into your wonderful Texas family, and your kind, gentle embrace told me that I belonged.
Diana and I had our first child a year after our marriage, and you became the grandfather that I wanted to become. You were patient, loving, generous, and involved in our children’s lives. They could not wait to travel to Houston or have you in Seattle in order to be spoiled by Lita and serenaded by you. You told them Gorgoña stories that imparted little snippets of wisdom that they still remember to this day.
Whenever I visited Houston I asked you to have a honey-do list of maintenance items for me to do. I will never forget the excitement, wonder, and appreciation that you showed when I fixed a fence or replaced a light fixture. You had a way of making me, and everyone feel like the most important person in the world.
You are my role model, the person whose character I strive to match every day. Thank you for being you. I am a better person, and our family is as rich as can be because you were in our lives. I love you to the end of time.
September 14, 2022
September 14, 2022
Our condolences to Belinda and they rest of the family. Arturo was a gentlemen who was kind and wanted a good education and success for students who were less fortunate. He was always ready to help to do what was necessary to get this accomplished. Belinda, we are here to help you during this sad time.
Love and blessings,
Janie and Solomon
September 14, 2022
September 14, 2022
I just found a card I never got to give you. I did a good job picking it, because it sums up how I feel.

"You are a part of everything I am. Lucky me. Thanks Dad."

I think of you throughout the day and the powerful role model you were and are. If I can live my life as you did, I will be utterly fulfilled when my own life comes to an end. It's not about the things I accumulate or the titles I garner--it's about how I treat others and make them feel. It's about the memories I create and the decency and honor with which I conduct myself. I am the luckiest person in the world, because I got to call you, "Dad."
September 13, 2022
September 13, 2022
My dear Lito,

I still cannot believe that you are gone. Just over a week ago you sat in your comfy chair watching the news with Diego at your side. I cannot put into words how much you are already missed by the family.

Some of my favorite memories include singing songs with you on the guitar every year when you would come to visit us in Seattle or we would go to Houston, my favorites being Cielito Lindo (has the word Lito in it!) and Solamente Una Vez. I will never hear groups like Trio Los Panchos or the beautiful Eydie Gorme without thinking of you and wishing you were there to appreciate the music with me.

I loved watching Jeopardy with you while you munched on your snacks (popcorn and Werther's caramels). I admire how you were constantly wanting to learn, until the very end. I remember I called you when Alex Trebek died and talked to you about how sad it was, as he was such a big part of our daily TV lives!

We also took so many trips together, trips that gave me so many wonderful memories and experiences. Some of my favorite trips include Casa Giddings in Cabo, our Alaskan cruise (with 19 family members?!) and our trip to Italy. Many of these trips happened because of you and Lita, and I am forever thankful.

Lito, thank you for everything. Thank you for always believing in me, for loving me unconditionally, for supporting me, for enjoying music as much as I do, for always leading by example, and for being the most honorable man I have ever met.

Grief is such a hard thing. I heard this quote somewhere, and I think it is quite fitting for this time in our lives.

"Don't cry because it is over, smile because it happened."

I will continue to smile for you, Lito. And maybe cry a little bit too.

September 12, 2022
September 12, 2022
Dear Belinda and family. 
Jose and I send our most blessed condolences. Arturo was a beautiful person always so respectful and caring. May he be resting in peace in the arms of Our Lord.  He will certainly be missed. We will always cherish all the memories we have of Arturo. May God continue to bless you and the family.
Love
Jose and Diana Carrion
Houston Texas
September 11, 2022
September 11, 2022
Dear Belinda, Diana, Rene, Russ and rest of family. What a tribute to a most a beautiful, loving, and fantastic professional and person who was my cousin (Arturo Alfonso Jacobs). Congratulations on your fantastic memorial. Pictures say a 1000 words and you all did a most memorable tribute. We will greatly miss Arthur. Please accept our most felt condolence. Love, Jose M. Pena Jr., Jose M. III, Melissa, Lucy, Estela Pena, Lauren (Granddaughter) and Andrew De Laney
September 10, 2022
September 10, 2022
Words can't adequately describe the impact that this kind, generous and inspirational leader had on those who knew him. Arturo made those of us fortunate enough to work for him excel and try mightily to live up to his expectations. He led by example and ushered me into the IRS executive program at a time when few women were admitted. I admired and revered him.
September 9, 2022
September 9, 2022
Dad,

You are the man I most admired in this world. I was so lucky to be born your son. You thought me patience, fair-play and a sense for justice and free speech. I have failed in these things many times, but I try because of you. You taught me that hard work pays off. That you can be ambitious and successful and still treat everyone around you with kindness and respect.
I have countless wonderful memories of our life together: Adventures in Egypt, Thailand, Indonesia, Jamaica, and Puerto Rico, all because you loved to teach and sought to work in these exotic places.
Family trips to Italy, England, and France. Cruises to Alaska and Cuba. Untold trips “across the river” to Mexico (and eating elote and cabrito there). All because you loved for us to travel together and get exposed to other cultures.
I will probably cherish most the smaller moments though – you and I fishing (we rarely caught anything edible), deep sea salmon angling (you and I were about the only ones not puking our guts out), you teaching me how to golf (I still have that wicked slice you taught me), and sitting with you countless times while you played guitar and sang Spanish Racheras. I have this indelible image in my mind of you and Salvador Garcia, sitting on rocking chairs on a Laredo porch on a hot Texas day, smoking cigarettes, drinking a really crappy beer, and playing guitars and singing with joy and abandon.

I will miss you terribly, but love you forever.

Rene
September 9, 2022
September 9, 2022
Helen and I will greatly miss Arturo's wit and infinite wisdom. We were fortunate to enjoy Arturo's friendship and my good fortune to have worked along side and as one of his managers for the time he served as one of the best District Directors the Seattle District ever had the great fortune to employ. We've both been blessed with the continued opportunity to call Arturo and Belinda very good friends for more than 40 years. We will miss you Arturo.

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Recent Tributes
September 6, 2023
September 6, 2023
Lito, I miss you terribly. How many people can truly say that their father-in-law was such a positive role model and an inspiration in their life? You were so wise, well-read and accomplished, yet so humble. You were kind to everyone. I am so blessed to have had you in my life.
I love eternally, Russ
September 6, 2023
September 6, 2023
There aren’t words to describe the holes in our hearts you have left behind. All the little things remind me of you, Lito.

An older gentleman played Cielito Lindo on his guitar at the Waterfront Center the other day, and I immediately burst into tears and sang along. He then invited me up to sing and with him, and I told him about you and our love of singing together. Thank you for everything, but especially for instilling your love of music in me. I will do my best to keep the musical legacy alive.
September 5, 2023
September 5, 2023
Dad, not a day goes by that I don't think about you. My grief is like a constant throbbing; it waxes and wanes but never leaves. There's still part of me that can't believe you're gone. I can hear your laugh, feel your hug, remember your warmth. Your integrity and moral compass were admired by all, professionally and personally. Your love, compassion and generosity touched us daily and left an imprint on our hearts. Your grandchildren feel your spirit within them.

I am left trying to live up to your example. Whenever I have a negative thought or feel tempted to do something I might regret later, I think of you. You never had an unkind word about anyone! You did the right thing even in the hardest of circumstances. When I was little, I wanted to be just like you. Nothing has changed, even with your passing, but we lost you too soon.
His Life

Evangelina Takes Flight and a Father-Daughter Project of Love

September 9, 2022
In about 2011, I started writing a young adult historical fiction based on Dad's mom's life (my abuelita). Adelfa García and her family came to the United States during the Mexican Revolution for fear of their lives because landowners were being murdered by Pancho Villa's troops. My great-grandfather was not a wealthy man, but he did own acreage on both sides of the border and this put them at great risk.

This turned into a project of love for Dad and me. I wrote chapters and Dad would read them. We'd discuss and I'd massage what I'd written. I tried to use Spanish throughout the book and Dad would gently correct my grammatical errors. There were many times I'd get stuck...unable to move the story line forward. Dad and I would talk, and AHA! Problem solved, and the work would continue. It took 4 years to write and another year to find someone to publish it. Then another year to get it in print! Dad wound up going around to some Houston and Laredo schools with me and helped give student presentations. He was a natural born public speaker and the kids loved him.

Dad was so proud that his mother's story was written for posterity. He was proud that our Mexican culture was accurately and lovingly portrayed. It brought us closer, and I didn't think that was possible, because we were already close as a father-daughter could be.

Evangelina Takes Flight and Chances in Disguise (the sequel) are both dedicated to him, in part. Dad was and will forever be my greatest source of inspiration. I am his daughter and the luckiest person in the world to hold that title. Everything he was--is what I strive to be.

Love you Dad...forever and ever with all my heart.

-Diana

A Tribute to Dad in Song

September 8, 2022
Dad loved to play guitar, mostly Mexican songs. Even American songs and Christmas music, he played with a Mexican flair! I put this YouTube video together years ago to honor him, my hero. He's playing Perfidia on guitar and I'm singing. We had lots of music in our house growing up, and a love of music continues in Dad's children and grandchildren. ~daughter, Diana
Recent stories

Texas and Gorgoño

September 13, 2022
Going to Texas every year, sometimes a couple time a year, was always the most special time for me. I cannot put into words how much I love the Texas sun (for 10 minutes, maybe), trips to HEB, family get-togethers, Pappasitos and Pappadeaux, watching novelas with Lita in bed, watching Jeopardy with Lito... I pray these memories never fade. I love Lito and Lita's house in Texas. That house reminds me of the feelings of being a young child again and embracing the unconditional love of a grandparent. It truly is one of my #1 happy places.

I also wanted to reminisce about one of the things my Lito and I did together when I was much younger. Lito and Lita coming to visit was always the most exciting time of the year in our household! I wanted to spend so much time with them, that I would plan to snatch them both away before they even got to put their bags down -- literally. Some of my favorite memories are when I would lock Lito in a dark closet with me and make him tell me spooky stories immediately upon arrival to Seattle. During one of these stories, Lito came up with a character named Gorgoño. He ended up being the star of all his stories! Gorgoño was a bit of a troublemaker who loved adventure, and he always had some sort of new task to complete or cave to explore. In true Lito fashion, there was always a lesson learned at the end of the story. I love that he was so willing to run up to the dark closet with me, even when he must have been exhausted from traveling.

My Wedding Day

September 11, 2022
Weddings are special in itself.  Roger and I both IRS managers were honored to have Mr. & Mrs. Jacobs attend our Reception and dance with us.  Thank you for the wonderful leader you were to all.  Always the love Arturo Jacobs  

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