Joan Ruth Baker (née Morrow) died Memorial Day, the 28th of May 2018 after several years of declining health. She is survived by her daughter, Margaret (Meg) Baker, of Ardmore, PA; her son, Donald (Don) Baker, of Everett, WA; daughter Elizabeth (Liz) Hinkofer and grandson Josef, both of Bothell, WA; niece Theresa Baird and her two sons, Liam and Seth, of Edmonds, WA. She is preceded in her death by her husband, Albert Ralph Baker. Joan was born May 6, 1930 in Lakewood, Ohio to William Moore Morrow, a civil engineer, and Ruth Morrow and spent her childhood and young adulthood in the greater Columbus and Cleveland areas. She graduated from Worthington High School in Ohio and went on to study Home Economics at Ohio State University where she met her husband to be, Al Baker. Al, was attending Ohio State on the GI Bill having served in the Occupation of Japan, and then joining the newly formed Air Force during the Korean War. Joan and Al were married in 1952 and Joan became the wife of a career officer with their first postings being (briefly) in Florida and then on to Fort Benning, GA, were her first daughter was born. They were posted in Xenia, Ohio, two and half years later when her son was born. While raising two children, Joan and family moved to Ann Arbor, MI and then on to Omaha, NE, where her second daughter was born. In 1963, Joan and family were domiciled west of the Mississippi, west of the Rockies, in northern California and embraced the western lifestyle. Al retired from the Air Force in 1969 and the family moved to the San Francisco area where beach going and hiking in the Sierra Nevada were favorite enjoyments. Yosemite was a hot spot and many, many summer weekends were spent there. Joan moved with her husband and youngest child to the wilds of the Pacific Northwest, settling in Edmonds in 1977 and remaining in the house they purchased there until her death. Joan also became a substitute teacher serving in classrooms for grades K – 8 in the SF Bay Schools. In Washington, she substitute taught in High Schools for Edmonds School District. Joan always enjoyed the culinary arts, becoming somewhat of a gourmet. Her avocation and passion lay also in the visual arts, mostly drawing and painting, and she enjoyed local art shows as well as those she encountered during her travels, first with her husband and, after his passing in 1997, with groups, her sister-in-law, Roberta, and her good friend and neighbor, Dorothy Jennings. She visited such places as China, Scandinavia, Romania, Peru, Turkey, Viet Nam, Central America and Europe enjoying the diverse cultures, food, art, and natural beauty. During her later years Joan was always busy. As a member of the Creative Retirement Institute which promotes lifelong learning for retirees she enjoyed many classes and helped with their brochures and web postings. With St. Dunstan’s Episcopal Church in Shoreline she was president of the St. Agnes Guild for a number of years. As a volunteer staff member, worked on the church newsletter and designed posters and fliers for events. Until recently she also volunteered with the church’s feeding ministry preparing meals for up to 400 people each week. Joan had a long, full life, and always cherished her role as a mother and grandmother. She was able to experience life in different regions of the USA and then to visit diverse nations around the world. She will be missed by her family and her many friends especially at St. Dunstan’s Episcopal Church in Shoreline. In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to St. Dunstan’s Church Feeding Ministry which can be accessed via the St. Dunstan's website www.sdchp.org