1920
James
2017
James Baker
August 22, 1920 — July 17, 2017
James D. Baker Obit
James Donald Baker, 96, died July 17, 2017, at Brighton Gardens of Prairie Village.
Born Aug. 22, 1920, in Junction City, KS, he had lived in Overland Park since 1958 before moving to Brighton Gardens in 2008. He retired from the U.S. Treasury Department in 1975 after more than 30 years service and immediately opened a law practice, specializing in tax law. Eventually his son, Jeff (J.D.), joined him, and they practiced together until his retirement at the age of 83.
He served honorably as a Radioman First Class in the U.S. Navy from 1939 to 1944 and was stationed at Pearl Harbor during the attack of Dec. 7, 1941. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Ad-ministration from Kansas State University in 1948 and a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Missouri in Kansas City in 1968.
He was a member of the Hillcrest and Community Covenant Churches, the American Legion, the Vet-erans of Foreign Wars, the Masons and the Abdallah Shrine.
He was preceded in death by his wife, DeLores, a son, Steve Baker, and a daughter, Cynthia Baker, his parents, David Louis and Autie Jane Carnahan Baker, one brother, Louis Carnahan Baker, and three sisters, Eloise Fairweather, Betty Sanchez, and Jean (Gig) Cooper. He is survived by his brother, Jerry Baker, White Salmon, WA; his daughter, Loralee Baker-Rapue and son-in-law, David Rapue, Olathe; his son, Jeff Baker, and daughter-in-law, Jennifer Luzenske, Overland Park; his daughter-in-law Nancy Baker, Prairie Village; six grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren.
Jim grew up during the Depression, one of six children whose mother eked out support for her family with a small herd of Jersey milk cows, an orchard and a big vegetable garden. Jim often recounted his childhood days of getting up at the crack of dawn to milk cows alongside his mother, then jumping into an old Model T to deliver milk to their customers. As the years went by, the crack of dawn seemed to get earlier and earlier in those stories.
He had watched the soldiers at nearby Fort Riley drilling interminably in the hot sun and wanted no part of that, so when he reached the age of enlistment, he opted for the Navy, and spent five years sailing the seas around the world. After two relatively carefree years, the U.S. entered the war in the Pacific, and according to his military records, he rarely had a break throughout the grueling duration of his service.
He then enrolled at K-State, attending school full-time while working 40-plus hours a week at a local hardware store. His days of milking cows, pulling weeds, and picking fruit had prepared him for work-ing tirelessly once again - with a little time for romance. One day, a blue-eyed blonde named DeLores walked into the hardware store looking for a frying pan to make fried chicken. “I like fried chicken,” Jim said, “Why don’t you invite me over for dinner?” Three months later they were married.
Jim and DeLores had four children together. The first, Cynthia, died when she was 11 days old of viral pneumonia. A week later, Jim’s beloved mother died of cancer. Somehow, they got through those dark days together. When DeLores found she was expecting again, the doctors sent her home to live with her parents on their farm. She and Jim wrote the most heart-wrenching love letters throughout her pregnancy, until Steven was born in December of 1948. Jim said he was the most beautiful baby he’d ever seen. In 1950 they had a daughter, Loralee. Jim called her his princess. Twelve years later, they had a son, Jeff, whom they called J.D. He was Jim’s pride and joy.
Although he considered both education and church important for the family, Jim was a playful father, always ready to join in the fun. Most evenings he played tether ball, football, or baseball with the kids, went swimming every night in the summer, and sledding in the winter. He could stand on his hands and claimed he’d been a circus clown. Most of all, he was active - always on the move. He played ten-nis every week, climbed a ladder and painted the house, took the family on a six-week camping vaca-tion, tap-danced around the Kansas City area with a lively group of seniors, and he still got up at the crack of dawn, only now he did it to make coffee for DeLores.
As he reached middle age, when most folks are slowing down, he decided to go to law school, and graduated from UMKC the same year Loralee graduated from high school. So began a whole new chapter in his life. When he retired from the Treasury Department, he didn’t even take a day off, he just started working as an attorney.
After DeLores died in 2000, he retained his physical stamina, but slowly began losing his memory. Over the next 17 years, little by little, the old Jim slipped away, but the new Jim retained some precious parts of him - his mischievous smile, his quick laughter, his sweetness, his gentlemanly nature, and his interest in others. We loved both Jims.- the brilliant accountant/attorney Dad we knew and the sweet, gentle, absent-minded Dad we came to know. He lived a life of hard work, adventure, laughter and service and made other lives brighter just by being around.
Private funeral services were held Saturday, July 22, at the Johnson County Funeral Chapel in Overland Park. The family suggests memorial contributions to the Alzheimer’s Association.
James Donald Baker, 96, died July 17, 2017, at Brighton Gardens of Prairie Village.
Born Aug. 22, 1920, in Junction City, KS, he had lived in Overland Park since 1958 before moving to Brighton Gardens in 2008. He retired from the U.S. Treasury Department in 1975 after more than 30 years service and immediately opened a law practice, specializing in tax law. Eventually his son, Jeff (J.D.), joined him, and they practiced together until his retirement at the age of 83.
He served honorably as a Radioman First Class in the U.S. Navy from 1939 to 1944 and was stationed at Pearl Harbor during the attack of Dec. 7, 1941. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Ad-ministration from Kansas State University in 1948 and a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Missouri in Kansas City in 1968.
He was a member of the Hillcrest and Community Covenant Churches, the American Legion, the Vet-erans of Foreign Wars, the Masons and the Abdallah Shrine.
He was preceded in death by his wife, DeLores, a son, Steve Baker, and a daughter, Cynthia Baker, his parents, David Louis and Autie Jane Carnahan Baker, one brother, Louis Carnahan Baker, and three sisters, Eloise Fairweather, Betty Sanchez, and Jean (Gig) Cooper. He is survived by his brother, Jerry Baker, White Salmon, WA; his daughter, Loralee Baker-Rapue and son-in-law, David Rapue, Olathe; his son, Jeff Baker, and daughter-in-law, Jennifer Luzenske, Overland Park; his daughter-in-law Nancy Baker, Prairie Village; six grandchildren; and eight great-grandchildren.
Jim grew up during the Depression, one of six children whose mother eked out support for her family with a small herd of Jersey milk cows, an orchard and a big vegetable garden. Jim often recounted his childhood days of getting up at the crack of dawn to milk cows alongside his mother, then jumping into an old Model T to deliver milk to their customers. As the years went by, the crack of dawn seemed to get earlier and earlier in those stories.
He had watched the soldiers at nearby Fort Riley drilling interminably in the hot sun and wanted no part of that, so when he reached the age of enlistment, he opted for the Navy, and spent five years sailing the seas around the world. After two relatively carefree years, the U.S. entered the war in the Pacific, and according to his military records, he rarely had a break throughout the grueling duration of his service.
He then enrolled at K-State, attending school full-time while working 40-plus hours a week at a local hardware store. His days of milking cows, pulling weeds, and picking fruit had prepared him for work-ing tirelessly once again - with a little time for romance. One day, a blue-eyed blonde named DeLores walked into the hardware store looking for a frying pan to make fried chicken. “I like fried chicken,” Jim said, “Why don’t you invite me over for dinner?” Three months later they were married.
Jim and DeLores had four children together. The first, Cynthia, died when she was 11 days old of viral pneumonia. A week later, Jim’s beloved mother died of cancer. Somehow, they got through those dark days together. When DeLores found she was expecting again, the doctors sent her home to live with her parents on their farm. She and Jim wrote the most heart-wrenching love letters throughout her pregnancy, until Steven was born in December of 1948. Jim said he was the most beautiful baby he’d ever seen. In 1950 they had a daughter, Loralee. Jim called her his princess. Twelve years later, they had a son, Jeff, whom they called J.D. He was Jim’s pride and joy.
Although he considered both education and church important for the family, Jim was a playful father, always ready to join in the fun. Most evenings he played tether ball, football, or baseball with the kids, went swimming every night in the summer, and sledding in the winter. He could stand on his hands and claimed he’d been a circus clown. Most of all, he was active - always on the move. He played ten-nis every week, climbed a ladder and painted the house, took the family on a six-week camping vaca-tion, tap-danced around the Kansas City area with a lively group of seniors, and he still got up at the crack of dawn, only now he did it to make coffee for DeLores.
As he reached middle age, when most folks are slowing down, he decided to go to law school, and graduated from UMKC the same year Loralee graduated from high school. So began a whole new chapter in his life. When he retired from the Treasury Department, he didn’t even take a day off, he just started working as an attorney.
After DeLores died in 2000, he retained his physical stamina, but slowly began losing his memory. Over the next 17 years, little by little, the old Jim slipped away, but the new Jim retained some precious parts of him - his mischievous smile, his quick laughter, his sweetness, his gentlemanly nature, and his interest in others. We loved both Jims.- the brilliant accountant/attorney Dad we knew and the sweet, gentle, absent-minded Dad we came to know. He lived a life of hard work, adventure, laughter and service and made other lives brighter just by being around.
Private funeral services were held Saturday, July 22, at the Johnson County Funeral Chapel in Overland Park. The family suggests memorial contributions to the Alzheimer’s Association.
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