MARION Wilmer BAKER
Marriages
Kittie Augusta "Gussie" Davenport Baker - April 8, 1934
at 131 Eagle Street, Gypsum, Colorado
Burial Details
Obituaries
Eagle Valley Enterprise page 6 - July 8, 2004
Same as the Vail Daily obituary.
Grand Junction Daily Sentinel page 10B - July 2, 2004
Vail Daily - July 2, 2004
Marion Wilmer Baker, 93, of Gypsum died in Glenwood Springs on Tuesday. He was born in Paige, Neb. on Dec. 10, 1910 on the farm of his parents, Reese Wilmer and Ethel Mae (Jenkins) Baker.
At the age of five, Marion's parents moved to Springfield, Colo. The Baker family then moved to the Grand Junction area, then known as the Grand Valley. Marion lived there until 1940.
He was educated in Grand Junction, and while attending the Hawthorn School, ran the one-mile race in four minutes and 4.5 seconds, setting a school record.
On April 8th, 1934 Marion married Gussie Davenport at her Aunt Hilma's home at 131 Eagle Street, Gypsum.
Marion worked for Gray's Bakery, Sloan's Dry Cleaning Plant, and the Denver and Rio Grand Railroad. The Bakers moved to California, living in San Francisco, where Marion worked for the Bethlehem Steel shipyard. When World War II broke out, the Bakers moved to Richmond, Calif. where he worked for the Kaiser Shipyard.
After the war Marion and Gussie returned to their beloved Colorado, living in Salida and Fort Collins before moving back to Gypsum in 1946. In Gypsum they owned and operated The Baker Market, a grocery, meat market and general merchandise store for seven years. They sold the store to Clarence and Georgia Lewis.
Over time Marion worked for Civil Aeronautics with brother-in-law Fred Davenport. He also worked as a carpenter in the Aspen, Vail and at Sunlight ski areas. He had also been a dispatcher for the Colorado State Patrol and for the Eagle County Road and Bridge Department.
When he retired in 1977, Marion was working as an appraiser for Clair Bertroch in the Eagle County Assessor's Office
Marion was a member of the First Baptist Church of Gypsum. He was on the Gypsum Volunteer Fire Department for 36 years.
His memberships include The Crown Lodge Odd Fellow Lodge #146; Glenwood Springs Eagle's Lodge #215; the R.E.A.C.; the Crater Rebekah Lodge #105, as Drill Captain; the I.O.O. F. Encampment; the Golden Eagle senior citizens in Eagle.
He was a member of the Congregational Church where he coached the church baseball team for three years. He served on the Gypsum Town Board.
Marion was a leader for the Boy Scouts and always enjoyed working with children and older people. Marion enjoyed teaching Sunday school, playing cards, bingo, dancing (especially square dancing), hunting, camping, fishing, gardening, and horseback riding, friends and family members say.
Marion and Gussie have been married 70 years. Their 70th anniversary party was held at the Golden Eagle Senior Center on April 8 and another celebration was held on June 26 during the 59th Baker-Lane family reunion in Glenwood Springs. Marion and Gussie both hosted and attended the reunion.
Marion is survived by his wife, Gussie; brother-in-law Arthur Davenport and his wife, Helen; and a sister-in-law, Margaret Davenport. Many nieces, nephews and numerous friends also survive him.
He was preceded in death by his parents; a sister, Iona Sharp; and a brother, Ralph.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that memorial donations be sent to the new Baptistery at the First Baptist Church, P.O. Box 815, Gypsum, CO, 81637.
A memorial service will be held at the First Baptist Church of Gypsum at 2 p.m., Saturday.
