Donald J. Blashill, age 67, of El Paso, TX, died Thursday, May
14, 2004, in El Paso. Don was born on the family farm in eastern
South Dakota, the youngest of three children. Shortly after his
birth, his father died. Then, in the first year of life, Don contracted
polio that shaped his childhood including successive surgeries
to his left arm and shoulder at the Shriners’ Hospital in
Des Moines, Iowa. Don’s struggle to survive as a very young
child and the family’s economic struggles created an indomitable
and even stubborn will to overcome any challenge. Poverty and illness
honed his acute perception of persons facing hardship, and Don
was a formidable advocate for those things that he thought would
better a person or a community. As a youth, he was active in school,
hunting, fishing, and working on the county fair carnival circuit
during the summer. While more physically robust young men and women
worked the summer harvest, Don sharpened his wits by traveling
with shows that would lead him across the small towns of the American
Midwest. In those years, Don developed a gift for spinning a yarn,
and his teaching was always colored by elaborate anecdotes and
often tales to illustrate a point or teach a student how to assess
a situation. With some savings each summer and with scholarships,
Don entered Augustana College in 1954. Upon completing his bachelor’s
degree, he entered the M.S.S.W. program at the School of Social
Work of The University of Texas at Austin and graduated in 1963.
Upon graduation, he assumed a post providing mental health services
with the Indian Health Services at the Sisseton Wahpeton and Little
Brule Indian reservations in eastern South Dakota.
He returned to Austin in 1965 to head the city's newly established
Community Action Agency. The agency was initially part of the United
Way where Don was hired by Vic Ehlers, a graduate of The University
of Texas at Austin School of Social Work and who had known Don
when Don was a student. Within a year, an independent board was
created by the community of Austin, and Don was named the first
executive director. As the home agency of President Lyndon B. Johnson,
that agency received considerable media attention and was regarded
as a model for much of the country.
Donald joined the faculty of The University of Texas at Austin
in 1967 and became the school’s director of field training
in 1968. During the 1960s and 1970s, he was a consultant to the
Senate Select Committee on Poverty and assisted in establishing
field teaching sites for the University in many communities across
the south and southwest. He traveled widely in New Mexico, Oklahoma,
Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas through responsibilities for the
University. We recognize his contribution to social work education
through his constant inclusion of multicultural content that could
prepare social work students for practice in a diverse society. He
used his experiences with Native American communities in South
Dakota and community work in east Austin as a base for that. Another
contribution was his work with a pool of practitioners whom he
hired and trained as they evolved into educators.
In 1991, Donald assumed the role of coordinator of the school's
graduate program in El Paso, Texas, and moved from Austin to El
Paso. During those years, Don developed many innovative collaborations
with The University of Texas at El Paso, agencies in El Paso and
Juarez, Chihuahua, and rural communities in West Texas and New
Mexico. He retired from the faculty of The University of Texas
at Austin in 1998 and remained active with the school's programs
through recruitment and teaching of graduate students placed in
El Paso.
In 2000, Don joined the faculty of the social work program at
The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). While a member of the
UTEP faculty, Don was appointed director of the Undergraduate Social
Work Program and advisor to the students seeking careers in human
services. Likewise, Don served as a consultant to the dean of the
College of Liberal Arts at UTEP and the dean of College of Arts
and Sciences at The University of Texas of the Permian Basin, providing
both colleges with invaluable guidance on all aspects of social
work education.
He was awarded an emeritus associate professor rank in 1997. We
remember Don as a vigorous and passionate colleague with a great
affection for teaching and for critical thought in committees,
faculty meetings, and chance discussions in the office or in an
agency. In both Austin and in El Paso, Don was an avid gardener,
working the soil with the same tireless dedication that he devoted
to his teaching. We also remember Don's passion for photography
and his ability to create beautiful portraits of flowers and other
objects of nature.
Don was a kind, sensitive, sensible man. He came to the school
at a time when schools of social work were beginning to seek faculty
with Ph.D.s and research interests. Don, however, was a consummate
social work practitioner professional. His interests were in helping
students develop practice skills. Although he had an appreciation
for research, he felt it best to use his talents in shaping students
in the fundamentals of social work practice. He was well regarded
by students, respected for his devotion to teaching and practice,
and his willingness to spend time with them. Although good humored,
there was a seriousness about him that produced extraordinary results
with his classes.
Don truly individualized students and helped them to pursue their
maximum potential. The students responded well to him whether he
was helping them draw out the essential meaning of a learning opportunity
and its implications or taking them to task for something they
should have recognized in providing client services but failed
to do so. Whether acting as patient instructor or stern taskmaster,
Don maintained the student's respect and admiration.
Don always brought a sharp focus to the tasks at hand. He had
a keen analytical mind and faculty often sought him out for advice
and counsel. He was always available and ready to assist when needed.
Blessed with conceptual clarity, he never begrudged going beyond
the call of duty, often serving as a mentor to students who needed
his expertise in resolving both personal and academic issues. Don
was among the last of the "traditional" social workers,
believing strongly in community development as well as helping
build interpersonal skills. The faculty was enriched by his presence.
Don is survived by his wife, Maria, of El Paso; his sons, Tracy,
Patrick, and Sean; his sister, Helen; and his brother, Dick. A
family memorial service was held on Saturday, May
22, 2004, at Cavalry Lutheran Church in Wallace, SD. A memorial
service in El Paso was held on The University of Texas at El Paso
campus on Saturday, June 19, 2004.
<signed>
Larry R. Faulkner, President
The University of Texas at Austin
<signed>
Sue Alexander Greninger, Secretary
The General Faculty
This memorial resolution was prepared by a special committee consisting
of Professors
Michael Lauderdale (chair), Eunice Garcia, George Herbert, and
Guy Shuttlesworth.
