Tom Blankley, 83, of Kenosha, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, December 13, 2017, at the home of his daughter in Pleasant Prairie. Born in Kenosha on November 4, 1934, he was the son of the late Charles F. and Irma (Rosing) Blankley, Sr. He graduated from Mary D. Bradford High School in 1952. In 1954 he joined the United States Air Force, serving in California and Hawaii from 1954 until 1958. He played clarinet in the band while stationed at Hickam AFB in Hawaii. He married Catherine Rosalie Truax on August 22, 1959, at Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Catholic Church. He graduated from UW-Madison in 1961 with a History Degree. In 1970 he completed his Masters Degree in Education at UW-Milwaukee. He was employed at Zion Benton High School from 1961 until 1968, and Tremper High School where he taught American History and English literature and Composition from 1968 until his retirement in 1997. After he retired he worked part time for a few years at Jelly Belly in North Chicago and Pleasant Prairie where he was a tour guide. He was a member of Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Catholic Church where he was a lector for the past 25 years and regularly read at the 4:15 Mass. He was also a member of The Knights of Columbus and member of a book club of retired KUSD teachers; they read their 100th book in August and celebrated by going to Gerhard’s. He enjoyed breakfast on Wednesdays with retired KUSD teachers. Tom loved the Chicago Cubs and going to Wrigley Field and enjoyed the Kenosha Symphony Orchestra, outdoor summer concerts, family picnics, cooking, stamp collecting and reading. He also enjoyed going to movies once a week; Woody Allen movies were his favorite. He enjoyed Tom & Jerry cartoons and traveling, especially to Disney World, with his wife, daughters and grandchildren. His favorite restaurant was the Bartley House where he celebrated many times over the years; in November he celebrated his last birthday there. He was very proud of both his daughters and his grandchildren. Surviving are his wife, Catherine Rosalie Blankley of Pleasant Prairie; two daughters, Carolyn “Carrie” (John) Boxrud and Jill Blankley, both of Pleasant Prairie; three brothers, Charles (Rose) Blankley of Racine, Philip (Shirley) Blankley of Racine, WI, and Giles Blankley of Adams-Friendship, WI; a brother-in-law, Dennis Houk of Apache Junction, AZ; two grandchildren, Lindsay Boxrud of Kenosha and Jake Boxrud of Beijing, China; and one great-grandson, Gunnar Boxrud of Kenosha. He was preceded in death by his parents; two sisters, Lynn Weiss and Lois Houk; a brother, Bruce Blankley; and two sisters-in-law, Marie and Phyllis Blankley. Visitation will be held on Sunday, December 17th, at Proko Funeral Home from 4:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Funeral services will be held on Monday, December 18th, with a prayer service at the funeral home at 10:15 a.m. with a Mass to follow at Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Catholic Church at 11:00 a.m. Interment will follow at St. George Cemetery.Proko Funeral Home & Crematory5111-60th StreetKenosha, WI 53144Phone: (262) 654-3533Visit & Sign Tom’s Online Memorial Book at:www.prokofuneralhome.com