Raymond Blehar

Remembering Raymond Blehar

With love and the fondest memories we announce the passing of Raymond Roger Blehar. He recently turned 88 years old and passed in his sleep on May 7th, 2024. This was very fitting, as Ray loved to sleep! He is preceded in death by his loving wife, Rosalie Blehar, and sister, Monica Murray. He is survived by his oldest sister, Sister Therese Martin Blehar, son Michael Blehar and his wife Beth Evans, son Raymond Blehar and his wife Deb Rider, and three grandchildren, Maggie, Lucy, and Sam Blehar. He is also survived by his nephew Patrick Murray and his wife Kathy, and niece Christina Winkle. 

Ray was born on April 9th, 1936 in Coral, PA to Michael and Mary Blehar. He was the middle child of three, and Ray and his sisters spent countless hours playing outside. Ray met the love of his life, Rosalie, in 1958 while dancing at a mutual friend’s wedding. As they say, it was love at first sight, and the two never looked back. Rosalie kept him well-fed, his social calendar full, and his ears full of stories, and the two traveled as much as they could, visiting places like Hawaii, Italy, and enjoying various cruises. They raised two amazing sons, Mike and Ray, who were Ray’s loyal fishing and hunting  partners, spending hours in the woods, on the water, and at the family cabin.

Ray absolutely loved nature, spending as much time as possible up until his final days gardening, fishing, hunting, bird-watching, or just sitting by a campfire sipping a glass of ginger brandy and smoking his corn cob pipe. With enthusiasm, he could tell you the name of any plant, bird, fish, or woodland animal you came across. 

He was also a lover of sports. Ray never missed a Pirates, Steelers, or Penn State football game on TV, and most conversations began with him telling you exactly how well or poorly they’d recently played. He coordinated his outfits based on which team was playing that day, and would even tune in to his grandchildren’s division III college teams now and again, wearing a corresponding sweatshirt or sweatpants in support. 

A loyal and hardworking man, Ray retired from the Pennsylvania Department of Liquid Fuels in 1999 after working there for over 20 years. His wealth of knowledge and skills made him successful in various roles, as prior to that he worked as an insurance agent, mail carrier, and laborer.

Ray was a man of few words who definitely had “selective hearing” at times, but when he did have something to say, it was always spot on, meaningful, and often very funny. And we have a lot to say about him. He was a Catholic man of faith, stubborn as a donkey yet unbelievably stress-free at all times, a lover of the outdoors, a prolific gardener, easy-going, calm, content, confident, sometimes rule-adverse, a radical acceptor, the king of going with the flow, a skilled fisherman and hunter, sweet, a professional chair sleeper, and an amazing husband, dad, and grandfather.  

After going through multiple kidney transplants, two open heart surgeries, prostate cancer, and other ailments throughout his 88 years, we always joked that Ray was a cat with nine lives, bouncing back each time stronger and more full of life than before. It’s hard to believe he’s no longer with us on Earth, and we will miss him very much.