Henry Stephen (Steve) Blake, beloved husband and father joined his Savior on Wednesday, April 2, 2025. A celebration of Steve’s life will be held Saturday, April 5 at 2:00 PM at First Baptist Church, Brownwood. The family will receive visitors at Heartland Funeral Home on Friday, April 4 from 6pm to 8 pm.
Steve was born in Corpus Christi on August 12, 1946, to Robert and Mary Sue Blake. He lived most of his life in Brownwood and graduated from Brownwood High School. He joined the Army National Guard on his 17th birthday, and being underage he talked his mother into signing the permission form. He was awarded 1st Place in Rifle Marksmanship during Basic Training at Fort Polk, Louisiana, and went on to serve six years in the Guard. He attended Texas A & M, among several other universities, before returning to Brownwood to work alongside his father at Wes-Texas Printing. He met his wife, Pam, on a blind date, and they married on December 27, 1970. They were married 54 years and had two sons, William Henry Blake and Christoper Michael Blake.
When his father retired, Steve became president and continued to lead the business in providing business cards and letterheads to other printers and companies around the U.S. He worked to build a pleasant working environment to his employees. One way was by dressing up in costume on special days and handing out treats. In 2001 Steve led a team at Wes Tex in being awarded the Rochester Institute of Technology/USA Today Small business Quality Cup for expediting production while maintaining product quality.
Going back to school just for the fun of learning, he got his bachelor’s degree from Howard Payne University in 1998.
Steve was active in First Baptist Church where he served as a deacon and on various committees in the church. He opened the Texas Firearms Museum that was active from 2010-2016 and was a former member of the Brown County History Museum. In 2018 he was awarded the Good Neighbor Award by the Brownwood Chamber of Commerce.
Steve was preceded in death by his parents, Bob and Sue Blake, a brother Bill Blake, a brother Roger Blake, and a son, Will Blake. He is survived by his wife, Pam, his son Chris, sister Beverly Norris and husband Larry, brother Paul, sister-in-law, Kathy Rich and husband Les, sister-in-law, Loma Blake, and numerous nieces and nephews.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials be made to CASA, Good Samaritan or First Baptist Church, Brownwood.
Condolences, memories, and tributes can be offered to the Blake family online at heartlandfuneralhome.com
