In Loving Memory of Blake Barklage

Blake Barklage was a 17-year-old senior at La Salle College High School and resident of Doylestown, Pennsylvania. He passed away tragically on October 30, 2021 of sudden cardiac arrest. The Blake Barklage Foundation and “Blake Gives Back” was founded to honor his spirit and memory.

Blake, who wanted to be a lawyer, was active at La Salle as a member of the Mock Trial and the Speech and Debate teams. He was awarded “Top Advocate” for his Mock Trial team on multiple occasions. He was also a member of the Model UN club, attending many councils, including at Penn State and Georgetown. He loved to mentor younger students and to use his passions to excite and invigorate others.

A member of the National Honor Society, Blake volunteered as a Student Ambassador and in community service at Triest Hall helping individuals with impaired intellectual and adaptive functioning.

In sport, Blake was a member of the varsity tennis team and a manager of the varsity soccer team. He also loved to play golf, playing competitively since he was 13 years old.

At La Salle, Blake found and formed strong friendships and lived a brotherhood molded from shared experiences, strengthened by diversity of though and appreciation for and of each other.

When he was not out in the Jeep with his sister making a Wawa run, he loved playing golf and spending time with his family at Commonwealth National Golf Club, where he also caddied. Blake spent his summers on Long Beach Island, New Jersey, sailing at Little Egg Harbor Yacht Club, forming deep relationships with his beach friends, and where he loved just spending time with his mom, dad, sister and extended family, including his cousins and LEHYC family.

Always smiling and laughing, Blake learned early how to balance competitive pressures with the joys of having fun, often remarking to others: “Have a short-term memory. Don’t let the last shot affect the next one.” He had a remarkably mature ability to use the past to make an even brighter tomorrow. Living the “Enter to learn, Leave to serve” creed, he wanted his last act to be an opportunity to help so many others as an organ donor.

For 2023, Blake Gives Back will focus on providing an elevator for Triest Hall, where Blake volunteered as a student at La Salle. Triest Hall is a residential home for eight adult men with intellectual challenges

For more information, visit the Foundation Webpage