Downtown Kissimmee has been without the watchful eyes of “Backup Bob” since he passed away on May 16 at the age of 76.
Bob, otherwise known as Robert Tarr, became familiar to those who have lived, worked or freq uented downtown in the last two decades.
Often found in security officer or police-type clothing, riding a donated three-wheel bicycle with a “Bike Patrol” sign, he’d patrol downtown and Lakefront Park. At some point, the bike was stolen, and his beat moved on foot.
While not a member of any police force, Tarr was an “extra pair of eyes” for police, watching out for the “good people” of Kissimmee, and respected by the Kissimmee Police Department. That’s how he got his nickname of “Backup.”
“When I came to KPD, he was one of the first people everybody I had to meet — it wasn’t the best cop in the building, it was Backup Bob,” said KPD Chief Jeff O’Dell. “Everywhere you went in downtown, he’d always be there on patrol. He was always friendly to law enforcement and would say ‘hello’. You’d hope every community had a person like that.”
And to carry on the legacy of such a community “friend of law enforcement,” Kissimmee Police is working with the Osceola Education Foundation to create a scholarship in Backup Bob’s name, that will help send students to the Police Academy.
To donate, go to the Foundation Community Donations website at https://bit. ly/397NQmn. Under “Apply my Donation To”, select “In Memory Of ”, followed by “Honor”. Under “Whom do you want to recognize?”, enter “Robert Back-Up Bob Tarr”.
In a video interview available on YouTube, Tarr said he was a police officer in his native New York.
“When I go anywhere, people know me, they say, “He y B o b, how are you doing?” he said on the video. “They (KPD) don’t want me carrying my gun.”
Bob is survived by his wife, Veronica Martinez, who he married on Valentine’s Day in 2017. He lived in an assisted lived facility about a block from KPD headquarters.
If you live or work in the downtown area, you have a “Back Up Bob” story. Jeremy Lanier, whose family has owned and run Lanier’s Historic Downtown Marketplace, has one that may have saved the business from ruin.
“Years ago, on a Saturday, nobody assigned who’d lock up the front, so nobody did,” he said. “That evening he noticed our door was open, at about 7 at night. He called KPD, who called my dad, who called me to check it out. Without him, the shop would have been open until Monday, and who knows what would’ve happened.”
Other tributes have been passed along via Facebook:
“When I was a teenager, he “busted” me for smoking cigarettes underage, then he asked me for one.”
“Backup Bob has always been and will always be a Historic Downtown Kissimmee Icon! One of my favorite memories is when he and his wife dressed up as Adam and Eve for Halloween.”
“He made the best of his situation. He was part of the downtown vibe.”
“Back before there were speed humps on Broadway, KPD Motors Unit would run radar along Broadway with Bob. They made him feel like he was one of them. KPD and KFD treated him well.”
