- Date Of Birth: January 21, 1931
- Date Of Death: January 25, 2007
- State: Indiana
Jack L. Blankenbaker Sr., 76, of Spring Mill Drive, died at 5 a.m. Thursday (Jan. 25, 2007) at home after an extended illness.
He was born Jan. 21, 1931, in Niles, Mich., to Wayne B. and Elizabeth M. (Papai) Blankenbaker. On Sept. 30, 1967, in Elkhart, he married Pamela A. (Martin) Stutzman.
She survives, along with five sons, Jack (April) Blankenbaker of Goshen, Todd (Kay) and Scott (Mary) Stutzman, both of Elkhart, and Michael (Chris) and Steven (Carole) Blankenbaker, both of South Bend; one daughter, Michelle (Joseph) Vittori of Los Angeles; 15 grandchildren; two great-grandchildren; and two sisters, Joan (Jim) Brown of Niles and Karen Pilarski of South Bend.
Mr. Blankenbaker was a tool and die maker at Vincent Bach, where he made many friends, for more than 30 years. He formerly worked at the Studebaker Corp. and Wheel Horse in South Bend. He was a 1949 graduate of Clay High School in South Bend and joined the U.S. Marines shortly thereafter, serving from 1949 to 1951 in Korea, where he earned a Purple Heart.
Mr. Blankenbaker was a member of New Salem United Methodist Church and was an avid fisherman and Indiana University basketball fan. He was a devoted father, grandfather and husband.
