Richard “Dick” Blankenburg, former publisher and editor of the old Five Cities Times Press Recorder in Arroyo Grande, died Jan. 28, 2023, after a struggle with Alzheimer’s disease, The Tribune in San Luis Obispo reports. He was 86.
Blankenburg was CNPA president in 1990.
The Blankenburg family purchased the Times Press-Recorder in 1959, daughter Cindy Blankenburg said, and ran the newspaper until its sale to the ownership of the Santa Maria Times in 1998. The paper closed in 2016.
“The philosophy was that (people) should appear in the newspaper three times: when they get married, when they die and (when) something good in their life happens to them,” Cindy Blankenburg said.
“I remember Dick as one of the quietest and most reserved presidents during his tenure as CNPA president in 1990, the beginnings of a somewhat tumultuous time for the organization prior to the hiring of Jack Bates as executive director,” said Craig Harrington, The Intermountain News, Burney; a former CNPA director and 2000 president. “Although not recognized fully at the time, Dick’s calm demeanor was probably what served the 34-member CNPA Board the best as it wrestled with the future direction of the statewide association.”
Veteran CNPA Members: Please share your remembrances of Mr. Blankenburg with us.
