Tribute to Brevard Legend Richard ‘Dick’ Blake Set June 13 at Cocoa High Stadium, Passed Away June 3

Dick, 91, of Cocoa/Rockledge, Florida, passed away peacefully on June 3

BREVARD COUNTY • COCOA, FLORIDA — Join the City of Cocoa, Cocoa High School, and the Blake family in honoring the life and legacy of Richard “Dick” Blake and the impact he had on our community.

Dick, 91, of Cocoa/Rockledge, Florida, passed away peacefully on June 3, 2025.

Visitation starts at 8 a.m. on Friday, June 13, and the Funeral Service will begin at 9 a.m. at the Richard “Dick” Blake Stadium, located at 2001 Rosetine Street “Tiger Trail” in Cocoa.

In the event of rain, the visitation and funeral service will be held at the Bernard Simpkins Fine Arts Center on the Cocoa Eastern Florida State College Campus at the same time and day.

The address is 1519 Clearlake Road in Cocoa.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Cocoa High School Richard “Dick” Blake Scholarship fund, honoring his commitment to education and the communities he served. Donate Here

To make a donation, select ‘1121 – Cocoa High School’ and then click ‘Go.’ From there, choose ‘Richard “Dick” Blake Scholarship’ and add it to your cart. Enter the donation amount and proceed to checkout.

Additional Visitation and Wake Service information can be found HERE.

OBITUARY: First African American Principal in Brevard Public Schools Richard ‘Dick’ Blake Dies at Age 91

ABOVE VIDEO: Dick Blake also got to know many of the black pioneers of integration in baseball who spent spring training in Florida. Players such as Roy Campanella, Jackie Robinson, Don Newcombe, Maury Wills, Junior Gilliam, Hank Aaron and Willie Mays came to call Blake a trusted friend. (Video aired in 2013)

BREVARD COUNTY • COCOA, FLORIDA – The City of Cocoa announced on Tuesday that Richard “Dick” Blake, a pioneering educator, civil rights advocate, Space Coast Sports Hall of Famer and public servant, has died at age 91.

Richard Blake, father of current Cocoa Mayor Michael C. Blake and proud parent of Sheralyn and Mark, was a historic figure in Brevard County.

He broke racial barriers as the first African American principal in Brevard Public Schools following desegregation, leading Cocoa High School for 23 years.

His leadership extended far beyond education, serving with distinction on the Rockledge City Council for four uninterrupted decades from 1976 to 2016.

Born in 1933 in the small Brevard County community of Bonaventure, Blake was raised in a family of migrant farm workers. Summers in the 1950s were spent laboring in upstate New York fields, instilling in him a deep sense of perseverance and humility.

His father, Virgil Blake, believed in the strength and promise of the Cocoa area, famously declaring that “Cocoa is where the family belonged.” That belief laid the foundation for generations of service to the community.

Blake’s dedication to civil rights, mentorship, and youth development left an indelible mark on Central Brevard. In recognition of his remarkable contributions, the Brevard County School Board unanimously voted in 2018 to name the Cocoa Jr./Sr. High School stadium in his honor — now known as Richard “Dick” Blake Stadium.

His legacy is also reflected in the very streets of Cocoa — Blake Avenue, named after his father Virgil Blake, commemorates the family’s commitment to civic leadership, as Virgil was the first African American appointed to a major advisory board in the city.

As the City of Cocoa honors Mr. Blake’s life, residents are encouraged to contribute to the Richard “Dick” Blake Scholarship fund at Cocoa High School — a lasting tribute to a man who inspired, uplifted, and empowered generations.

“His passion for the people of Cocoa and Rockledge never wavered,” the city shared in a statement. “The impact Richard ‘Dick’ Blake had on our community will be felt for generations to come.”

A history of athletics in Brevard County would most certainly include a chapter on Dick Blake’s extraordinary accomplishments.

The grandson of freed slaves and life-long resident of Rockledge, Blake was the seventh of 10 children in his family, eight of whom eventually earned college degrees. Attending Cocoa’s black Monroe High School, Blake starred in football as a wide receiver, in baseball as a first baseman and basketball as a 6-foot-5 forward-center.

His athletic prowess earned him a scholarship to Florida A&M University, where for four years he played both basketball and football. After graduating from college he taught and coached in Brevard, and in 1955 became Monroe High School’s head basketball and football coach, and taught biology and math at the school.

Blake’s basketball teams were powerhouses in the Florida Interscholastic Athletic Association in the era of segregated education. He coached Monroe High School to a third-place finish in the state in 1963, was runner-up in 1964 and captured then back-to-back state championships in 1965 and 1966.

Coaching at Monroe for 11 years, Blake was asked in 1966 to help pave the way for integration in Brevard County by becoming the new assistant principal at Cocoa High School, at what is now Rockledge High School.

School administrators included Bob Blubaugh, who later became the Brevard County School Superintendent and Abe Collinsworth, who later became Astronaut High School’s first principal before also serving as Brevard Public Schools superintendent.

FOSTERED RACE RELATIONS

Blake knew Collinsworth well from AAU basketball and as the coach of Eau Gallie High School.

“There was a basketball tournament that Abe organized back in 1966, bringing together not only all the white high schools in Brevard County, but also the three black high schools,” Blake said.

Eau Gallie and Monroe met in the championship game of the tournament, with Blake and Collinsworth as opposing coaches. Early in the tournament’s title game, Monroe’s quick guard, Alfonso “Butch” Dennis, stole the ball from Eau Gallie’s best player, Rudy Hannah, and sprinted toward the other end of the court for a layup.

But Dennis never made it to the basket. Hannah fouled him hard, shoving Dennis into the wall behind the backboard. Blake said Collinsworth took Hannah out and benched him for the rest of the game. It wasn’t about winning with him. The tournament was all about creating an environment to foster better relationships and understanding between races.

Monroe went on to win, 83-50, and several years later, Collinsworth and Blake would work together at the new Cocoa High School. Blake became a fixture at the school and, when the new Cocoa High School was constructed, continued his career in education there, becoming the school’s principal in 1978, serving in that position until his retirement in 2003.

Blake refereed high school basketball games for 33 years, earning an officiating Rank of 5, the highest-ranking possible based on testing and evaluations. He officiated from 1970 until his retirement in 2003, working both boys and girls contests and calling many state tournament games during that span.

LONGEST SERVING ELECTED OFFICIAL

Blake also got to know many of the black pioneers of integration in baseball who spent spring training in Florida.

Players such as Roy Campanella, Jackie Robinson, Don Newcombe, Maury Wills, Junior Gilliam, Hank Aaron and Willie Mays came to call Blake a trusted friend.

Blake has spent 36 years on the Rockledge City Council, the longest tenure ever served by anyone in elected office on the Space Coast. He has two sons, Michael, Cocoa’s first black mayor, and Mark, and one daughter, Sheralyn.

In recent years, a city park in Rockledge was renamed in his honor. Dick Blake’s accomplishments as an athlete and sports official, educator and school administrator, elected community servant, and leader in civil rights and racial equality issues are legendary. We were proud and honored to induct him into the Space Coast Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2013.

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