Roy Morris Blake Sr. (March 29, 1928 – March 4, 2017) was a Texas politician and businessman from

Nacogdoches, Texas Nacogdoches ( ) is a small city in East Texas and the county seat of Nacogdoches County, Texas, United States. The 2020 U.S. census recorded the city's population at 32,147. Nacogdoches is a sister city of the smaller, similarly named Natchito ...

. He served in the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. As of the 2010 United States census, each member represents abou ...

from the 4th District. He also served in the

Texas Senate The Texas Senate ( es, Senado de Texas) is the upper house of the Texas State Legislature. There are 31 members of the Senate, representing single-member districts across the U.S. state of Texas, with populations of approximately 806,000 per cons ...

from the 3rd district, and was president pro tempore of the Texas Senate in the Seventieth Texas Legislature.

Personal life

Roy Morris Blake was born on March 29, 1928 in

to Lynn T. and Pattie Lee Hall Blake, he was the youngest of 6 children. In 1945, he graduated from

Nacogdoches High School Nacogdoches High School is located in north east Nacogdoches, Texas. Nacogdoches High School is the high school of the Nacogdoches Independent School District. It serves all of the city of Nacogdoches and most of Nacogdoches County. History Pr ...

, and then attended

Texas A&M University Texas A&M University (Texas A&M, A&M, or TAMU) is a public, land-grant, research university in College Station, Texas. It was founded in 1876 and became the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System in 1948. As of late 2021, T ...

for 1 year before enrolling in the

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage of ...

to fight in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. After returning to

Nacogdoches Nacogdoches ( ) is a small city in East Texas and the county seat of Nacogdoches County, Texas, United States. The 2020 U.S. census recorded the city's population at 32,147. Nacogdoches is a sister city of the smaller, similarly named Natchitoch ...

he began to attend Stephen F. Austin State University where he graduated in 1950. On June 28, 1949 he married Mae Deanne Goodwin, they had 5 children together. One of their children is

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

Representative Representative may refer to: Politics * Representative democracy, type of democracy in which elected officials represent a group of people * House of Representatives, legislative body in various countries or sub-national entities * Legislator, som ...

Roy Blake Jr. Blake was a member of First

United Methodist Church The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelical ...

Nacogdoches. Mae Deanne Blake died on April 24, 2012. Blake died on March 4, 2017 at his home in

at the age 88, he was under

hospice care Hospice care is a type of health care that focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's pain and symptoms and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs at the end of life. Hospice care prioritizes comfort and quality of life by ...

. His funeral was held at First United Methodist Church Nacogdoches, and was officiated by Dr. Jeff McDonald. Blake is buried at Sunset Memorial Park in Nacogdoches, Texas.

Career

Political

Blake began his political career by being elected to the

City Commission in 1965, he served 6 years or 3 terms on the commission. Blake was sworn in to represent

Texas House of Representatives, District 4 District 4 is a district of the Texas House of Representatives that serves the whole of Kaufman County and a portion of western Henderson County. Its current representative is Keith Bell, who has served since 2019. Major cities in the district ...

on January 9, 1973. Blake was a strong proponent of local governments throughout his career, and earned recognition from Texas Municipal League. Blake was elected to

Texas Senate, District 3 District 3 of the Texas Senate is a senatorial district that serves all of Anderson County, Texas, Anderson, Angelina County, Texas, Angelina, Cherokee County, Texas, Cherokee, Hardin County, Texas, Hardin, Henderson County, Texas, Henderson, Hous ...

and was sworn in on Feb 28, 1978. While in the senate he was on several committees such as the Senate Administration Committee. Blake was president pro tempore of the Texas Senate during the Seventieth Texas Legislature. Blake was a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Business

Blake founded the Roy Blake Insurance in 1963.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Blake, Roy Sr. 1928 births 2017 deaths Stephen F. Austin State University alumni Members of the Texas House of Representatives Texas state senators