Shirley L. Blinn

Shirley Blinn was born October 20th, and liked to remind people that she came into the world just days before the Wall Street Crash of 1929. She grew up in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles on Talmage Street. The three Isham sisters and Norris Shupe were her playmates and became lifetime friends. In 1947, at the age of seventeen, she married Warren Blinn. They spent their honeymoon at the St. Catherine Hotel on Catalina Island, and then made their home on the Balboa Peninsula in Newport Beach. They often sailed together in Warren’s Lehman 10 dinghy. In 1949, Shirley gave birth to Warren Jr. and, a year later, to Bruce. The family had a 32-foot sloop, Dasher and spent weekends cruising the coast and at Catalina. Shirley enjoyed family camping trips in the San Bernardino Mountains and the High Sierras. She was a Cub Scout den mother and an active member of the PTA at Newport Elementary. In 1961, she began working as a bookkeeper at Warren’s canvas shop in Costa Mesa. In 1969, she and Warren bought 12 acres on Stillwater Creek in Mt. Gate, California. A believer in Jesus from childhood, Shirley began attending Mt. Gate Community Church, where she taught Sunday school. In the late 1980s, she split up with Warren and moved to Palm Desert. There, she worked as a medical assistant for several years before moving to Costa Mesa. In 1992, she bought a home in Laguna Woods, where she attended Grace Hills Church. Memories of her Aunt Florence (Nano) inspired Shirley to begin taking worldwide trips. She visited Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and the Holy Land. In the 1990s, she invited her daughter-in-law, Nancy, and her grandson Joshua, on a trip to Paris and London. Shirley and Nancy also took trips to Scotland and a Mediterranean cruise. She enjoyed traveling to San Jose and Humboldt County to spend holidays with her children and grandchildren. In 2019, she traveled to Israel with a group from Grace Hills Church. On the trip home, she contracted a virus and her health began to decline. On New Year's Day 2020, she moved into assisted living at Atria Del Sol. The family would like to thank the staff there for the loving and compassionate care she received. Her cousin Norris often came to visit and take Shirley out to lunch. The family met Athena Umali when she cared for Shirley’s mother, Julia. Athena has become a loved member of the family. She visited Shirley daily and was with her when she took her last breath.

Shirley was preceded in death by her father, Challen Franklin (Buddy) Landers, and her mother, Julia (Peggy) Landers. She is survived by her sons, Warren Jr. and Bruce Blinn; her grandson, Seth Blinn, and his lifelong partner, Sara Ware; her grandson, Joshua Blinn; her great-grandson, Taylor Blinn, and his wife Brooke Blinn; her great-grandchildren, Kolby Blinn, Nix Blinn, and Chloe Blinn; and her great-great-grandchildren, Landon Blinn and Hudson Blinn.

A Graveside Service will be held at 10:00 AM on Tuesday, July 7, 2026, in the Sunset Court Mausoleum Section of Pacific View Memorial Park, 3500 Pacific View Drive, Corona Del Mar, CA, 92625, with Pastor Mike Johnson of Grace Hills Church, officiating.