Baker, Richard L. 1929-2004

BAKER, TONEY, SMITH, THOMPSON, VAN DAM

Posted By: Volunteer Transcriber
Date: 4/7/2005 at 17:16:23

Richard L. Baker, 74, of Newton died Thursday, June 17, at USA Healthcare in Newton.

Services will be held Monday at 1:30 p.m. at the Wallace Family Funeral Home in Newton with Pastor David Rex officiating. His body will be cremated following the services. Burial will be at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Newton Union Cemetery. Family and friends may gather at the cemetery prior to the time of the service.

Visitation will be Monday at the funeral home from 8:30 a.m. until the time of the service. Memorials in his name may be left at the funeral home.

The son of Loris Arthur and Florence Helen Toney Baker, he was born Oct. 3, 1929, in Decatur County. He graduated from Newton High School in 1947. He lived in Newton for a total of 47 years. He also lived in Leon for 12 years and Marion, Ohio, for 15 years.

In June 1952, he married Leota Mae "Maise" Smith, in Omaha, Neb. She died in 1999. He married Yukona Thompson on Oct. 14, 2001, in Newton. He worked as a foreman for General Dynamics in Lima, Ohio. He also worked for Marion Dresser in Marion, Ohio and the Parsons Co. in Newton. He also worked for DeGrado Grocery in Newton. He served in the U.S. Army and the National Guard. He was a member of Moose Lodge 923 and American Legion Post 111.

Survivors include his wife, two sons and daughters-in-law, John and Linda Baker of Marion, Ohio, and Corey and Lorelea Baker of Newton; a step-son and daughter-in-law, Paul and Dianna Kunze of Corona, Calif.; four grandchildren; two step-grandchildren; a brother-in-law, Ford Thompson of Newton; and a sister-in-law, Geraldine Van Dam of Springfield, Mo.

He was preceded in death by his parents; his first wife; a son, Ronald Joseph "Joe" Baker in 1990; and a granddaughter, Jamie Kae Baker in 1998. ~ Newton Daily News, Newton, IA, Saturday, June 19, 2004