June Evelyn Blanton

June Evelyn Blanton

7/13/1931-12/21/2025

Services for June Evelyn Blanton will be held on Saturday, January 31, 2026, at 1:00PM at New Life Community Church in Pismo Beach, in the Student Center, located at 941 N. Oak Park Blvd., Pismo Beach, CA 93449.

June Evelyn was born on July 13, 1931, in Chatsworth, CA, to parents Ruth and Leland Olsen.  The family of three moved to a small farming town of Buttonwillow, CA, in the summer of 1933, when June was just two years old.  Her parents purchased their first tractor and began farming the land.  During the early years on the ranch, the Olsen family grew to a family of five with the birth of June’s sister Dorothy and brother Norman. The children grew up on the ranch, enjoying family life while learning the value of hard work.

From 1936-1942, June attended grade school at Elk Hills School in Tupman, CA.  She had a pony named Sally, who delighted June by coming up to the back porch each day for her sugar cube.  One of June’s greatest joys was when her father would hitch Sally to a small cart, and the two of them would ride around the ranch together.  At the age of nine, June enrolled in The Phillips School of Music, where she began taking accordion lessons—an instrument she would continue to play into her adult years. Ranch life was full and joyful, and the family frequently gathered with aunts, uncles, and cousins.

During her junior high years, from 1942 to 1944, June raised and showed steers in 4-H, a natural choice since both of her parents were 4-H agricultural leaders. The family traveled throughout the region to county fairs, including the Kern County Fair and Livestock Shows, where June proudly earned many first-place ribbons for her steers. Showing animals and traveling the fair circuit became a shared family adventure.

From 1944 to 1948, June attended Kern County Union High School in Bakersfield, CA, graduating in June 1948 at just 17 years old. Throughout high school, she remained active in 4-H, traveling with her family through the region. June loved baseball, her favorite team being the Dodgers. She would often tell of listening to the games while gathered around the old radio with her family. June’s father Leland and his brother Teddy, June’s uncle, coached a girls’ softball team made up largely of cousins and their close friends. June was the team’s pitcher—and she could really sling that ball. It was during her high school years, at the age of 15, that June met JR Blanton, who lived with his family in Buttonwillow.

June and JR dated and spent time traveling with family between Buttonwillow and the coast, where June’s grandparents lived in Oceano, California. Summers were often spent at Pismo Beach, creating lifelong memories. Her grandmother—lovingly known as Nanny—enjoyed digging for clams, while her grandfather preferred to watch. June and her cousins treasured their time at the beach house in Oceano.

On February 12, 1950, June married JR Blanton at the First Baptist Church in Bakersfield.  Their first home together was an apartment in downtown Buttonwillow. June worked briefly at the post office before her first child, Judith Lynn was born in 1952.  The family of three eventually moved to Taft, CA.  where June attended the Taft College Adult Center, completing an advanced nursing course in 1956. She was then employed by Dr. Ted Worden and his wife, Lee, at their medical center in Buttonwillow. June loved working for them and gained valuable knowledge and experience in the medical field. June continued playing softball after high school, and in 1956, the Olsen family team captured the Shafter Summer Girls’ Softball League Championship. June gave birth to her second child, Shirlee Doreen in 1957.

In 1958, June and her family moved to the coast and purchased a home in Grover City, CA. She gave birth to her third child, Kevin Todd in 1960. While her three children were young, June devoted herself to being a homemaker and became actively involved in the Parent Teacher Association at their schools and she also served as a leader for the Girl Scouts. The family of five soon became a family of seven when June lovingly took in and raised two young girls who had been abandoned by their mother while their father was stationed in Germany, caring for them until they were reunited with their family.

In 1963, after JR was seriously injured in an automobile accident, June returned to the workforce to help support her family. During JR’s recovery at French Hospital, a man named Travis Evans visited and prayed with him. Through this difficult season, this encounter would change their lives forever. JR was saved and baptized on October 10, 1965, and the family joined the Grover City Church of the Nazarene, becoming members in May 1966.

June continued her education, working as a Certified Nursing Assistant at Arroyo Grande Community Hospital, where she was later offered training to become a certified operating room technician. She worked for several years as a scrub nurse, a role she truly enjoyed. Outside of work, June loved bowling. She and JR bowled together, and she also joined a women’s league with several coworkers from the hospital.

In the late 1970s, June worked as a waitress at Farm Boy’s, where she met Rudy and Angie Lopez. When they opened their own Mexican restaurant, June followed them there, continuing to serve others with joy. She became affectionately known as “Gramma June,” and even had a menu item named after her—Gramma June’s Special—which included a tamale, a chili relleno, a cheese enchilada, beans and rice.

The later years of her life were marked by many trials and difficulties, but this provided a time for reflection and growth in her spiritual life. She loved to spend Sundays at church with her church family and friends. Through the years, she remained faithful and loving toward her children and grandchildren and toward anyone in need.  

June will be remembered for the deep love she showed to everyone she met. She was a devoted mother and grandmother who loved unconditionally. She was an encourager—supportive, selfless, kind, generous, content, forgiving, and joyful. She was an overcomer, and she was deeply loved by many.

June passed away peacefully on December 21, 2025.  She is now safe in the arms of her Father.

June is survived by her daughters Judy McDaniel; and Shirlee Blanton-Valente and her husband Greg Valente.  Grandchildren: Timothy and Gina Brockway; Amanda Brockway; Bryson and Breanna Valente; and Nickolas and Molly Valente. Great- grandchildren: Devin and Braden Brockway, Melia Shimel, and Gunnar Church. Brother Norman Olsen and several nieces and nephews.

June was preceded in death by her parents, Ruth and Leland Olsen; her grandchild Ryan Valente; her ex-husband and best friend JR Blanton; her sister Dorothy Fine and brother-in-law Harold Fine; her son-in-law Dennis McDaniel; and son Kevin Blanton.

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