Joseph Anton Blenkle Jr.

Joe grew up in North Highlands, California, the youngest of three children born to Joseph A. Blenkle, Sr., and Afton Davis Blenkle. He attended American River College, earning his Associate of Arts degree in Business in 1979, and later graduated from California State University, Sacramento, with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism in 1982. Following in his father’s footsteps, Joe became a gifted and versatile writer—no matter the subject. He was truly a man of the written word.

Joe loved sports and turned that passion into storytelling. In his early years, he wrote about roller derby, wrestling, running, and skiing. While attending American River College, he served part time as Sports Information Director, where he was the announcer for the ARC Beaver football team and organized numerous Beaver Believer 5K and 10K races.

At the same time, Joe worked at Carmichael Athletic Club, where his writing talents took on a more personal tone. There, he left handwritten love notes—still cherished today—in the check in box of his future wife, Sharlene, who was a member at the club. Their first date on December 1, 1982, marked the beginning of a love story in which they saw or spoke to each other every single day until his last. They were married on December 1, 1984, in South Lake Tahoe, California, and built a beautiful life together, raising their son, Justin—Joe’s greatest legacy.

In 1983, when the Coleco Adam computer was launched, Joe developed what could only be described as a passionate fascination. He became the creator and webmaster of ColecoAdam.net and was well known within the Coleco Adam community. Through this shared interest, he met Dan Orlando, whom Joe described as his only friend. He remained an active and respected member of that community throughout his life.

In 1987, Joe accepted a position with the Orangevale News and the Folsom Telegraph as Sports and Entertainment Editor. It was his dream job. There, he expanded his talents beyond sports to cover the entertainment world, reviewing movies, stage productions, and theater. His passion for Coleco Adam games opened the door to reviewing mainstream video games as well, including Atari and Nintendo.

Joe is survived by his loving wife, Sharlene; his son, Justin; his brother, John, and sister in law, Terri. He will also be deeply missed by his beloved cats—Shadow, Rip, Katie Purry, Sofi, Toby, Graycie, Ziggy, Buttons, and Fauxby.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to Animal Outreach of the Mother Lode.

https://animaloutreach.net/donate-here