Joseph B. "Joe" Blowers

You may stream the service at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, June 26, 2024 by clicking here .

Joseph B. Blowers was born on September 30, 1929 in Prospect, Ohio. When talking about his birth, he would often remind family and friends that he was born in a log cabin with a dirt floor.

Joe was born to parents Joe and Ruth Blowers and had 3 siblings, Bill, Bob and Emma, all of whom have preceded him in death.

Eventually settling in North Toledo, the Blowers family became longtime members of Riverside Baptist Church. Joe's steadfast faith and morals were formed during this young age when his mom was a Sunday School teacher, something he himself would do for over 60 years.

By moving to North Toledo, that allowed Joe to attend Woodward High School, where he graduated in 1947. During his time at Woodward, he took an apprenticeship in the print shop learning all the facets of running a well-oiled operation. Through this program Joe was able to secure a job at The Blade as a printer for over 30 years. Joe was very proud of his trade and would often tell stories about how The Blade still operated during the Blizzard of '78.

When Joe was called to serve in the United States Army during the Korean War, he took his deployment to Germany with great respect and honor.

It was also in North Toledo where he would meet the love of his life, Carolyn Ruch. They would marry on Carolyn's birthday, September 1, in 1955. Joe would joke that he married Carolyn on her birthday to help him only have to remember one day each year. Joe made sure that Carolyn was always cared for as she was a lifetime diabetic and suffered from dementia toward the end of her time on earth. Over the 65 years of marriage, Joe and Carolyn volunteered at church and WPOS FM, traveled with WPOS and friends, worked out almost every afternoon at the YMCA and would eat lunch at the Byrne Rd. Burger King where they helped establish "the Burger King Group," which still meets today.

Joe and Carolyn welcomed their first child, William (Bill) on June 24, 1957. Their second child, Annette followed a couple of years later on September 12, 1959. With their family complete, Joe took his role as father with great pride and humility. Joe and Carolyn instilled the same values of faith, love, and kindness in their new family. As Bill and Annette grew, Joe would consistently volunteer to help with the church youth group and help at church camp each summer.

After retiring in 1992 from The Blade, Joe found more time to volunteer at Riverside Baptist Church (eventually Cass Road Baptist Church), multiple other religious organizations, work on his gardens, go for long walks with Carolyn and spend time with their 5 grandchildren. Joe was so immensely proud to add the title "Grandpa" to his life. Beginning with Megan and Allison, then followed by Mark, Scott and Joel, Joe and Carolyn loved all of their grandchildren and relished spending time with them. You would often see Joe and Carolyn at school award ceremonies, in the audience for a play or musical, or sitting out in the elements at a sporting event--they made every effort to see their grandkids shine.

Joe's life was filled with faith, family and love. He passed away surrounded by these same values at the age of 94 on June 13, 2024. When he entered Heaven, he was greeted by those who preceded him in death including his loving wife, Carolyn Blowers, his son, Bill Blowers and his daughter, Annette McGorty.

Joe is survived by his daughter-in-law Teresa Blowers; son-in-law Duane McGorty; granddaughters Megan (Eric) Reinhart and Allison (Christopher) Arisco; grandsons Mark Blowers, Scott McGorty, Joel (Christine) McGorty and his great-grandchildren Adrianna, David, Drew, Aria, Mila, Dallas, Denver, Brady and Jackson.

The family would like to express their sincerest gratitude to the staff at the Gardens of St. Francis and Hospice of Northwest Ohio who made Joe a part of their family.

The family will welcome visitors at Newcomer Funeral Home Southwest Chapel located at 4752 Heatherdowns Blvd. Toledo, OH 43614, on Tuesday, June 25 from 2-8pm with the funeral services on June 26 at 10am.

Memorial donations can be made to Cass Road Baptist Church.