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Former Delta College, Port Leader Dies

Posted on: Thursday, 23 February 2006, 12:00 CST

By Yasmin Assemi, The Record, Stockton, Calif.

Feb. 23--STOCKTON - Joseph L. Blanchard, a past president of San Joaquin Delta College and a retired commissioner for the Port of Stockton, died Monday. He was 94.

The World War II and Korean War veteran served as Delta College's president from 1969 to 1976 and oversaw construction of its Stockton campus.

Previously, Blanchard served as superintendent for 15 years at the former Manteca Union High School.

"He really built the campus," said Delta President Raul Rodriguez.

Elizabeth Blanchard, his wife of 34 years, said her husband, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps, raised the American flag every morning in the back yard of their Stockton home. On Wednesday, that flag flew at half staff.

The couple met while she was negotiating higher raises for the teachers' union at Delta. Joseph Blanchard was vice president of the college at the time.

"We were pretty much on opposite ends," said Elizabeth Blanchard, who teaches psychology at Delta College.

Blanchard said she was attracted to her husband's respect for women and minorities, and his honesty.

"You either liked him or hated him," she said. "He wasn't one of those milquetoast people."

While at Delta College, Joseph Blanchard started a nursing program and helped many young women graduate from college, including one who would later serve as a Delta trustee.

Trustee Maria Elena Serna credits Blanchard for motivating her to pursue her education.

In the late 1960s, Serna was invited to a reception honoring her for her high grade point average. The invitation letter came with a green business card that listed her name, 3.8 GPA and Blanchard's signature, Serna said. The letter is long gone, but Serna still has the card in her scrapbook, she said.

"I remember sitting there for a good half-hour looking at that letter and card from him. That is what really got me going in terms of going to college and becoming a full-time day student," said Serna, who received a bachelor's degree in political science from University of the Pacific in 1973.

"He was my academic hero. To this day, it means an awful lot, what he did," she said.

Elizabeth Blanchard said her husband had a dry, witty sense of humor. The couple visited about 70 countries and made 12 trips to China - his favorite destination. He liked everything about China except the food, she said.

Joseph Blanchard also served on the Stockton Ports Commission, the San Joaquin United Way and other organizations, and was the first person to receive the San Joaquin Council of Governments Regional Excellence Award in 2000. He received an honorary law doctorate from Pacific in 1976.

Along with his wife, Blanchard is survived by three children from a previous marriage. Per his wishes, memorial services will not be held, his wife said.

Contact reporter Yasmin Assemi at (209) 546-8272 or yassemi@recordnet.com

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Record, Stockton, Calif.

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Source: The Record

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