Novato’s Indian Valley Brewing Participates in National Fundraiser for Marine Corps Memorial

Why would a small craft brewery in Novato participate in a nationwide fundraiser for a war memorial? The family that runs Indian Valley Brewing has a very good reason, tied to their inspiring patriarch.

Pete Tachis, brother of business partners and brewery owners Joe and Matt Tachis, is helping to coordinating the Novato event with the national fundraising organization. He said several hundred 16-ounce commemorative cans will be on sale at Indian Valley Brewing until they run out. The October 19 unveiling is being billed as “a day of great beer, great tacos, and great company for a great cause.”

“Our dad was a proud Marine, and a great husband and father,” Pete Tachis said. “Both Mom and Dad taught us valuable life lessons. Dad also taught us some Marine lessons, like how to make neat bunk, with ‘hospital corners’ and bedding tucked so tight that you could bounce a half dollar on it. He also taught us about the history of the Corps, the value system of the Corps, and of course the Marines Hymn. We can still sing a few bars if you ask us.”

Tom Tachis, who raised his family with wife Rita mostly in Corte Madera, participated in the invasion of Operation Chromite, more commonly known as the Inchon Landing, the taking of Seoul, and the Battle of the Chosin Reservoir. Inchon was the Americans’ initial landing location in the effort to fend off Chinese-backed North Korean communists from overtaking South Korea. Six months after the Inchon landing, the Chosin battle took place in brutal winter weather, and American military was trapped in mountains as Chinese and North Korean troops zeroed in. Tachis and other survivors of that battle became known as the Frozen Chosin.

The Amphibious Tractor Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit focused on raising money to build the memorial at the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Triangle, Virginia, just south of Washington D.C. The memorial honor AmTrac Marines who manned landing craft and amphibious assault vehicles since the unit was formed in 1942 during World War II.  The association’s mission is to “ensure this legacy endures, recognize and reward exceptional Marines, and support the education and hardship needs of our Marines and their families over time.” 

Tom Tachis, who died in 2018, was not just a war hero in the family. He was a beer hero, too. After the Korean War, he took a sales job at the Hamm’s brewery in San Francisco as he and Rita started their family, eventually producing 12 kids. In addition to learning about Marine Corps lore, the youngsters grew up hearing the Hamm’s jingles about “The Beer Refreshing” and “The Land of Sky Blue Waters.” Later, Tom worked for a Budweiser distributor in San Jose and the now-closed Avenel Imports of Mill Valley. He was one of the first to bring Kronenbourg beer from France and Cooper’s from Australia into the U.S. market.