Joseph “Joe” Blahnik

Joseph “Joe” Blahnik, age 82, of Brownsville, Minn., passed away peacefully in the presence of family at his home on May 18, 2025.

Joe was born January 17, 1943, in Austin Minn. He was the third of 13 children born to Louis and Mary (Snyder) Blahnik. He graduated from Rose Creek High School in 1961. In his mid-20s Joe served for two years in the U.S. Army, where he was primarily stationed in Germany. Joe married Cathy Greeley on October 10, 1970, and had seven children together. They had a few different addresses before they hung their hat at a farm near Brownsville, Minn., in 1981, where Joe resided until his death.

Joe ran a small dairy cow and dairy goat farm and enjoyed the farm life very much. He also worked for ABS, DHIA, then back to ABS until his retirement in 2018. He and his family raised almost every farm animal imaginable at some point in his life. He raised and butchered farm animals, and also grew, harvested and preserved vegetables from his large garden. He still had a garden and was raising goats and rabbits on his farm outside of Brownsville up until the last few days of his life.

Joe was a great provider for his family. He worked long hours with DHIA while maintaining his own farm – to ensure that his family’s needs were met. He sacrificed sleep during those years, to provide for his large family. He kept the family freezers full with the vegetables from his garden and processed animals from his farm.

Joe was a very sociable man. He had a distinct voice that could be heard from anywhere in the room. He had a great sense of humor and always enjoyed telling a good joke. For those of us who were part of his life for a long time, we heard many of the good jokes (and some not so good jokes) several times.

Joe enjoyed his fishing trips. Over the last 25 years, he took several memorable fishing trips in Canada with his sons. And in the last few years, he has enjoyed several more local fishing adventures with some of his brothers. Joe enjoyed deer hunting but did not have a lot of time to devote to it. He frequently had a freezer full of venison, but it mostly came from friends and neighbors. Joe was a big fan of all Minnesota sports at all levels, and particularly enjoyed the Twins, Timberwolves and Vikings.

Faith was important to Joe. He was a devout Catholic and attended weekly mass for his entire life. For the last approximate 44 years, he was a member of St. Patrick’s Church in Brownsville. His presence will be very much missed by his fellow parishioners.

Joe was a family man. He had close relationships with his siblings, many whom he communicated with daily. He enjoyed many annual and traditional outings with his siblings. He also enjoyed spending holidays and several annual get-togethers with his children and grandchildren. Joe was a loving, caring and giving man. He will be missed by many.

Joe is survived by his children Sarah (Chris) Sevick, Luke Blahnik, Frank Blahnik, Adam (Terrie) Blahnik, Jake (Christine) Blahnik, Emily Blahnik and Annie Ellis; grandchildren Eli, Jack, Ayden, Maggie, Noah, Lilia, Luveah, Caia and Mikayla, stepgrandsons Sam King and Jakob Komperud, brothers James Blahnik, Donald (Brenda) Blahnik and Fred (Carla) Blahnik; sisters Mary (Ken) Haggerty, Darlene (Joe) Kraus, Dorothy (Jerry) Denison, Caroline Greeley, Betty (Jerry) Pestka and Cathy (Jack) Bly.

He was preceded in death by his parents, twin sisters Bonnie and Barb, and brother Francis.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be at 11 a.m., Friday, May 23, at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church, Brownsville. There will be a rosary at 9:30 a.m. and visitation will follow before the service in Breza Hall at the church. There will be a luncheon in Breza Hall following the service and burial will occur at 2:30 p.m. at St. Ignatius Cemetery, Spring Valley, Minn.

Condolences may be sent to Joe Blahnik Family, McCormick Funeral Home, 205 E. Main St., Caledonia, MN 55921. Online condolences may be given at mccormickfuneralhome.net.