Lester D. Blickley

Lester D. Blickley, 77, of Nazareth, PA, passed away peacefully while surrounded by his family on Thursday, September 4, 2025.

Born on June 27, 1948, in Coaldale, PA, he was the son of the late Frederick Blickley and Elizabeth (Mulholland) Kirklosky.

Lester, who many called Tony or Big Tone, grew up in Tamaqua, PA and graduated from Tamaqua High School in 1966. He met the love of his life, Patricia, who he often called Trisha or Shisha, at the East End Social Club, whom he eventually married on July 31, 1971. Lester and Patricia had the privilege of celebrating 54 years of marriage in July. Lester looked forward to his wedding anniversary every year and cherished every second he got to spend with his loving wife. In March of 1979, he celebrated the birth of his first child, Kelly, who he often called “princess”. After the birth of his daughter, he moved to Lower Nazareth, where he lived the rest of his life. In September of 1980, Lester welcomed his second child, Ronnie, followed by the birth of his third child, Danny, in July of 1982. During his life, he enjoyed his work at Bethlehem Steel, as a crane operator, until his retirement. Lester was a very giving man. He was a volunteer firefighter at Southward Fire Company in Tamaqua. After his move to Lower Nazareth, he continued his volunteering at Hecktown Fire Company. At Hecktown, Lester held multiple positions during his many years such as, assistant fire chief, fire marshal, and board member. During his time at Hecktown, he enjoyed working the carnival, bingo, and the 500 club. During his life, he faced many medical challenges, despite his chronic health issues, he always had a great attitude. Every morning, he would enter dialysis and yell “Good morning all you wonderful people.” Lester’s children have always been his joy in life; however, his true pride and joy were his grandchildren. He became a pappy in April of 1998, when Crystal Ann, who he often called “Crystalkid”, was born. Followed by the birth of Cassandra, Alaina, Jocelyn, Austin, Steven, and his adoptive granddaughter Casey. Lester was so proud of his grandchildren, often telling everyone the amazing things they’ve accomplished. He could often be found proudly telling everyone and anyone who would listen that his one granddaughter is a lawyer (Crystal) and his other granddaughter (Casey) is a nurse. Lester’s most recent highlight was to walk Crystalkid down the aisle to marry his new grandson, Keith. He didn’t have any great-grandchildren, but he did have great-grandpups including “Da Bear”, who was his day-to-day protector and snack buddy, along with Shadow and Winnie. He lived the remainder of his life listening to the oldies, sitting in the sun, and eating ice cream and “crackers” with his wife in their home. Despite the many health challenges that required him to learn to re-walk three times, his resilience and perseverance never ended. Until his last breath, he fought to be the husband, dad, and pappy we knew and loved deeply.

Lester is survived by his wife, Patricia (Tuckett) Blickley, his children, Kelly Blickley and her fiancé, David, Ronald Blickley and his wife, Dana and Daniel Blickley, his grandchildren; Crystal and her husband, Keith, Casey, Steven, Cassandra, Alaina, Jocelyn and Austin, the family dog, “Da Bear” aka The Pups, his siblings, William and Charles Kirklosky, Frederick Blickley and Cynthia Blickley-Joseph and his many nieces and nephews.

Along with his parents, Lester was predeceased by his step-father, Charles Kirklosky, his step-mother, Betty Blickley, his brothers, James and Ronald Blickley and his brothers in law, Ronald and William Tuckett.

A Viewing is scheduled for Wednesday, September 10, 2025, from 2:00 to 4:00 PM, at the Finegan Funeral Home, 4080 William Penn Highway, Easton, PA, with a Funeral Service to directly follow.

Donations may be made to Lester’s Family to help support his wife, Patricia.