Obituary of Albert Lamar Blankenship

Albert Lamar Blankenship, Jr. passed away on February 5, 2015. He spoke not a word of complaint as he fought stage IV cancer for over four years with courage and unwavering determination. He was born in Welch, West Virginia in 1948. His family moved to Tucson in 1951. He graduated from Catalina High School in 1966 and from the University of Arizona with a business degree in 1970. He received his law degree from the UofA in 1973. Practicing law from 1973 to 2014, Al was a very well respected attorney who helped thousands of people with many different types of cases. His family always knew his clients were very fond of him, but it has been surprising and heartwarming to hear from so many clients about how much they truly loved and respected him. Al was married to the love of his life, Becky, for 41 years. Together they own a small ranch where, for the last 25 years, hundreds of children have learned to ride, love, and care for horses. Al was a loving father and an entertaining and endlessly patient grandfather. In his free time, he enjoyed hunting, fishing, race cars, race horses, and working around the ranch. He was a very handy guy who could fix just about anything. He was good-naturedly teased about the creative methods he sometimes employed. Al was preceded in death by his father, Al Sr. and his brother, Remo. He is survived by his mother, Benvenuta; wife, Becky; sisters, Davida (Joe) Jepson and Filomena Blankenship (Paul Goff); daughters, Joanne (Jon) Tepley and Barbie (Bruce) Patterson and grandchildren, Riley, Ella and Charlotte Tepley and Ruth, Sam, and Daisy Patterson. Al will be remembered for his work ethic, humor, quick wit, quiet determination, encyclopedic knowledge, humility, and love for his family. Although we will miss him always, we know he is now up above, watching over us, working at making everything OK again, just as he always did, when he was here with us. Al's Funeral will be on Sunday, February 15, 2015 at 2:00 p.m. at The Oro Valley Church of the Nazarene, 500 W. Calle Concordia, Visitation will be Friday, February 13, 2015 from 7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. at the ADAIR FUNERAL HOMES, Avalon Chapel, 8090 N. Northern Ave. in Oro Valley.