Rita Lorraine Blandin (née Domanico) passed away peacefully on March 15, 2024 at her home in Doylestown, PA surrounded by her children.
Born in 1933 in Philadelphia, PA, she was the daughter of the late Anna and Joseph Domanico.
Rita grew up in Northeast Philadelphia, where she attended Our Lady of Consolation primary school and Saint Hubert’s High School for Girls. She married Benjamin Blandin, Jr. in 1956 and moved to the suburbs in the early 1960s where she and her husband raised their five children.
She had a keen interest in politics and served on the Chalfont Borough Council in the 1970s and was a member of the League of Women Voters. A working mother, she had a long career in real estate as a Broker and Manager for Eichler and Moffley Realtors in Chalfont and Doylestown, which later became Prudential Fox and Roach. She continued her career at Penn’s Grant Corporation in Doylestown until she retired in 2018 at the age of 85. She was also active in the Bucks County Association of Realtors.
Rita was smart, strong, and fiercely independent. She had a lifelong love for learning, which continued through her last days. She was a gifted seamstress and began what became a prolific quilting practice in 2013, creating quilts from her own patterns and designs, many of which are now lovingly enjoyed by her children and grandchildren. She was an excellent cook, always exploring new cuisines and recipes, hosting large family holiday gatherings, and coming up with new ways to interpret family favorites. She was an avid reader and enjoyed the NYT daily crossword puzzle. She spent several years as a co-chair of her condominium community library.
She is survived by her five children: Anne Marie Stricklin (Ron), Anthony Blandin (Kathy), Barbara Blandin, Carol Rossi (Mark) and Elizabeth Blandin (JD); her four grandchildren: Chloe Stricklin (Kyle), Mackenzie Stricklin, Elisabeta Blandin and Eniko MacDonald (Evan); her great-grandchild, Primlee Fayre MacDonald as well as her brother, Ralph Domanico (MaryAnn) and their ten children and many grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.
A celebration of Rita’s life will be held at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, please consider making a memorial contribution in Rita’s name to: Bucks County Free Library, 150 S. Pine Street Doylestown, PA 18901-4932 (buckslib.org/support) and/or Bucks County Opportunity Council, 100 Doyle Street Doylestown, PA 18901 (bcoc.org/food-pantries).