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Prominent Tampa Lawyer William F. Garcia Dies At 77

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By RICH SHOPES

The Tampa Tribune

Published: September 22, 2008

TAMPA - William F. Garcia's interests ran the gamut, including homemade Christmas ornaments. But perhaps he was best known for his role in local Democratic politics.

A lawyer, Garcia was a rising star in the Democratic Party in the 1960s, at one point resigning from his job as assistant attorney general in Hillsborough County to manage the gubernatorial campaign of Democrat Earl Faircloth.

Faircloth lost the election to Reubin Askew, and Garcia returned to private practice, spending most of his legal career at a downtown office at Morgan Street and Kennedy Boulevard.

"He was a fixture at the county courthouse," said his son, Joseph Garcia of Chapel Hill, N.C. "He knew everybody."

Garcia died Friday. He was 77.

Garcia worked mostly behind the scenes in politics, but in the mid-1960s ran for election as a civil court judge, losing to incumbent Henry O. Wilson.

Garcia backed Faircloth as attorney general, and Faircloth remembered the affable, energetic young man when organizing his campaign for governor in 1971. He tapped Garcia to head his campaign.

Through the 1960s, Garcia crafted a reputation as a staunch Democrat and skillful community organizer. He was named president of Florida's Young Democratic Club and, in 1965, elected president of the Tampa-Hillsborough County Junior Bar Association.

Garcia's fortunes might have changed dramatically had Faircloth won the governor's race. When Garcia returned to private practice, working mostly civil cases, he hardly sat still. He continued giving financial support to Democrats, and, when fired up enough, sent letters to The Tampa Tribune.

Whatever his interests, he threw himself into them, said his wife, Vera, 73, a retired elementary school teacher.

He was active in the Masons, as well as Centro Asturiano de Tampa, the mutual aid and social club.

He helped win state funding to restore Centro Asturiano's brick building at Palm and Nebraska avenues, and in 2001 helped bring in donations to benefit earthquake victims in El Salvador.

His mornings followed mostly the same pattern, starting with coffee, Cuban bread and a crossword puzzle. He didn't wear a watch and occasionally used a pocket watch.

"It would have been nice if he wore a watch," his son said, laughing.

He pored over historical documents and was fascinated with local and Spanish history.

He assisted the staff at a museum in Spain dedicated to emigrants from the Spanish principality of Asturias and at one point consulted with Nilo Cruz, who wrote the Pulitzer Prize-winning play "Anna in the Tropics."

Garcia provided information about Ybor City's old cigar factories; his parents were from Asturias and owned a little restaurant at Howard Avenue and Beach Street that cooked for factory workers.

One of five children, he attended the University of Florida, both for his undergraduate and law degrees.

After a stint in the Air Force, he returned to Tampa and bought a house in the city's Wellswood section, but remained in the Air Force Reserves. He retired from his law practice in 2005.

At Christmas, the couple made ornaments from wood, straw and jewelry they affixed to packages and gave to family and friends. "He was a wonderful person, very, very bright," Vera Garcia said.

Garcia and Vera were married 51 years. In addition to Joseph Garcia, 46, they have another son, Bill Garcia, 50, of Washington, D.C.

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Sunday at the John Darling Masonic Lodge, 4601 N. Habana Ave.

Reporter Rich Shopes can be reached at rshopes@tampatrib.com or (813) 259-7633.

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