Viola Baker

Viola Olive (Thompson) Baker died February 22, 2004 at 4:05 AM at the age of 97 years 10 months and 27 days. She was born April 20, 1906, in Ottawa, Kansas to Leonard (Lenzy) Thompson and Doris Wilson Thompson. When Viola was one year old her mother died. Her father took her and her 2-year-old sister to Logan, Iowa to live with their grandmother Angeline Wilson. Her grandmother passed away in five years so Viola and her sister went to live with her great grandmother Elizabeth Perry. At age 12 she witnessed the death of this great grandmother and were then raised by her great aunt Matilda Perry. Viola has shared many happy memories of her life with family and friends from this period.
She graduated from the Logan High School in 1924. She taught country school in Nelson Hollow west of Dunlap. She rode the train between Logan and Dunlap for these two years of teaching. She met Leo William Baker during this time and they were married on September 19, 1928 at the Methodist parsonage in Logan. They moved to Dunlap and lived out the rest of their lives in this community. Born to this union were four children, Vione Doris and her husband Harlan Lightwine, both deceased, Shirley May Baker Kirk, Arnold Leo (Bud), and Linda Lou Baker Thomas. Viola and Leo celebrated 54 years of marriage by the time of Leo's death in 1982.
Viola (Vi) and Leo and a couple of friends played in their own band (Night Hawks) during the depression. She could make any piano swing with her unique style of playing. She also had played the violin in high school. Leo played the trumpet and banjo, mandolin and most stringed instruments. She belonged to the Rebekah Lodge and Bunco Club, Women's Army Relief Corp during World War II. Around 1950 she went to work for the Dunlap High School helping to start the school lunch program. She worked many years in the school lunch program until Leo's retirement. She was a long time member of the Dunlap Care Center Auxiliary and spent many loving hours helping and entertaining the residents there. For years she sent home made cards to the residents so no one was ever with out some mail to cheer them up. The Care Center honored her by naming her woman of the year and titled her the "Four Season Santa". She was nick named "The Card Lady" and sometimes "Mrs. Claus".
She spent years trying to locate the father she hadn't seen since she was one year old. She finally located him from a newspaper ad she ran in a paper in Kansas. Some relatives recognized her story and contacted Viola. She finally located her father in Mitchell South Dakota around 1956. She learned he had been injured years before and had suffered some amnesia. He lived for only one year after Viola found him. Viola said it was a wonderful year getting reacquainted with her dad, his lovely wife Violet and his family of eight boys. Viola and her half brothers became very close in love and friendship.
Viola's love and life was her family. She was a devoted and caring wife and mother and grandmother. She was a friend to all and will be missed by all.
She is survived by one son, Arnold Leo (Bud) Baker of Shell Knob , MO. Two daughters and their husbands Shirley and Jim Kirk of Dunlap and Linda and Estel (Tom) Thomas of South Sioux City, NE. and one half brother Paul and wife Alma Thompson of Ralston , NE.
There are 17 grandchildren: Christy and her husband Roy Shaffer, Vicky and husband Mike Carson, Debbie and her husband John Clark, Terry and her husband Dave Rife, Craig Lightwine wife Myrna, Steve Lightwine and wife Marilyn, Bill Kirk and his wife Linda, Kathy Kirk Melby and husband Harold, Shelly Kirk Whitmer and Lee, Sue and her husband Terry Yust, Lori and her husband Dennis Moore, Penny Youngblood, Jeff and Mike Ambrose, Bonnie and her husband Gary Deen, Mequila Trizila and Les Thomas. There are 46 great grand children, and 15 great great grand children.
Services were held at the Fouts Funeral Home in Dunlap, IA on Wed. Feb. 25 at 10:30 AM. Services were conducted by Paster Judy Deweber and lunch was served by the Ladies of the Methodist Church. The pall bearers were Bill Kirk, Craig Lightwine, Jeff Ambrose, Mike Ambrose, Roy Shaffer, Mike Carson, Les Thomas. Internment was made at Pleasant Hill Cemetery in Dunlap.