Jerald BLIZIN

BLIZIN, Jerald 92, of Largo, FL died August 31, 2020. He is survived by his wife, Betty Blizin; sisters, Rochelle (Leon) Katz, of Minnesota and Roberta (Merrill) Fischbein of Minneapolis; children, Jennifer (Charles) Gillis of Pittsboro, NC, Julia (Nancy Cavanaugh) of Greensboro, NC, and Stephen (Cheryl) Blizin of Calabasas, CA; and grandchildren, Leah and Lane Gillis and Jake Blizin. A 1948 graduate of the University of Minnesota School of Journalism, Jerry was a reporter for the St. Petersburg Times (now the Tampa Bay Times). From 1963-65, he was the Times' Washington DC Correspondent. He was press secretary for Florida senator George Smathers until the early 1970s, when he joined the public relations firm of Hill & Knowlton. An avid jazz fan and formidable drummer, Jerry was also known for his quick wit and deep knowledge of the arcane. He retired to Tarpon Springs, Florida in the mid-1980s and was a resident of Cypress Palms in Largo, FL when he passed away of complications from heart disease.