A First Date to Remember
Their first date was an evening in San Jose at the iconic De Anza Hotel and a performance at the Center for the Performing Arts. Unlike their professional meeting, Lee dressed casually, feeling comfortable being herself. They shared food, great conversation, and plenty of laughs during the performance. The date was a success, and more followed, including dinners at the Golden Oak in Morgan Hill. Despite their connection, their lives seemed headed in different directions— John was a single father with a thriving practice in Gilroy, while Lee’ s career kept her busy in Carmel.
Love Finds a Way
Weeks passed before they reconnected, as both began to realize their relationship was worth pursuing. John’ s commitment to making things work inspired Lee to take a leap of faith. Over the next few months, both completed trips abroad separately but remained close, as their romance blossomed. Upon Lee’ s return from one of her trips, John picked her up at the airport and whisked her away to Miwok Village, where he proposed. From there, they were off to Napa to introduce Lee to John’ s mother, whose first comment was“ Rizzi? She must be Catholic!”
To Mrs. Blaettler’ s delight, Lee confirmed,“ Yes I am!”
Lee was soon off to Europe again. This time John’ s thoughtful gestures swept Lee off her feet. Armed with a copy of Lee’ s itinerary, John sent love letters to every stop along the way. Upon each of Lee’ s check-ins, she was presented with one of John’ s letters.
“ He already had my heart, but those letters were incredible,” Lee said.
The couple married on January 17, 2001, in a joint Catholic and Presbyterian ceremony at the Presbyterian Church in Gilroy. They welcomed their daughter, Morgan, in 2005 and embraced the challenges and joys of parenthood together.
Overcoming Life’ s Challenges
Life wasn’ t without hardship. The loss of John’ s eldest son, Sean, in 2010 and Lee’ s mother, Barbara, in 2023 tested their resilience. When the pandemic disrupted Morgan’ s high school plans and athletic career in 2020, the family’ s unwavering support helped her recover and thrive. By 2023, Morgan was back in the starting lineup, a standout scholar-athlete, and was named Poet Laureate of her 2023 Christopher High graduating class. She is a nationally published author and is pursuing a creative writing degree at Chapman University. John and Lee could not be prouder of her accomplishments and character.
She’ s incredible— a brilliant writer, so resilient, an amazing person,” Lee said.
Legacy of Community Service
John and Lee have always been deeply connected to their community. Before they met, Lee served on boards like the Monterey Peninsula Professional Women’ s Network and the YWCA. John, raised on his family’ s dairy farm, learned the importance of giving back early on and served with organizations like the Gilroy Rotary and the Gilroy Garlic Festival. Together, they’ ve continued to volunteer and serve, reflecting their shared commitment to giving back.
A Love Rooted in Mutual Respect
As empty nesters, John and Lee have embraced travel, pickleball, and camping trips, staying active and connected. Their shared love for Gilroy and dedication to service strengthen their bond and inspire those around them.
“ For us, mutual respect is key,” John says.“ A healthy relationship amplifies who you are, not restricts you.”
Lee agrees,“ We’ ve built a life here, honoring my mom’ s legacy of giving back and embracing everything this community has to offer.”
As John puts it,“ We’ re here because we love being here, and we love being a part of it together.”
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