Thais F. O'Donnell Shuler Blatnik (November 20, 1919 – December 9, 2015) was an American journalist and politician who served in both chambers of the

West Virginia Legislature The West Virginia Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of West Virginia. A bicameral legislative body, the legislature is split between the upper Senate and the lower House of Delegates. It was established under Article VI o ...

Early life and education

Born in

Wheeling, West Virginia Wheeling is a city in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Located almost entirely in Ohio County, of which it is the county seat, it lies along the Ohio River in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains and also contains a tiny portion extending ...

, Blatnik grew up in

Weirton, West Virginia Weirton () is a city in Brooke and Hancock counties in the U.S. state of West Virginia. Located primarily in Hancock County, the city lies in the northern portions of the state's Northern Panhandle region. As of the 2020 census, the city's pop ...

. She graduated from

West Liberty University West Liberty University (WLU) is a public university in West Liberty, West Virginia. It is West Virginia's oldest institution of higher education. It offers more than 70 undergraduate majors plus graduate programs, including a master's degree ...

Career

Blatnik worked as a reporter for the ''Weirton Daily Times'', '' The Wheeling Intelligencer'', and as an editor for the '' Dominion Post''. Blatnik served in the

West Virginia House of Delegates The West Virginia House of Delegates is the lower house of the West Virginia Legislature. Only three states—Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia—refer to their lower house as the House of Delegates. Organization Regular sessions begin with ...

from 1977 to 1978 and again from 1980 to 1986. She then served in the

West Virginia Senate The West Virginia Senate is the upper house of the West Virginia Legislature. There are seventeen senatorial districts. Each district has two senators who serve staggered four-year terms. Although the Democratic Party held a supermajority in the ...

from 1989 to 1996 as 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 ...

Personal life

Blatnik died in Wheeling, West Virginia. Her granddaughter, Amy Shuler Goodwin, is the mayor of

Charleston, West Virginia Charleston is the capital and List of cities in West Virginia, most populous city of West Virginia. Located at the confluence of the Elk River (West Virginia), Elk and Kanawha River, Kanawha rivers, the city had a population of 48,864 at the 20 ...

References

1919 births 2015 deaths People from Weirton, West Virginia Politicians from Wheeling, West Virginia Journalists from West Virginia Women state legislators in West Virginia Democratic Party members of the West Virginia House of Delegates Democratic Party West Virginia state senators West Liberty University alumni 21st-century American women {{WestVirginia-politician-stub