Shirley A. Baker's Obituary
Shirley was a devoted wife to Lester Baker, her husband of 64 years, the loving mother to her two sons Douglas (Linda} and Paul (Kim) , grandmother to James (Erin) and Kate Baker (Geoff Blumenthal) as well as a great grandmother to Mackenzie and Ashlynn.
Shirley was born in Vanleer, Tennessee to Edna and Clarence Robinson and the family along with her baby sister Melba moved "up north" to the Detroit area in about 1936. The family eventually settled in Madison Heights (Royal Oak Township) where she went through the Lamphere school system and then to Royal Oak High School where she graduated in 1949. Shirley went to business school after graduation and went to work at Murray Body Manufacturing in the office as a secretary/bookkeeper. It was while working there she met her future husband Lester on a blind date. They were soon married and were married for 64 years until Lester's death in 2015.
Shirley and Lester lived briefly on the east side of Detroit before moving to a brand new GI bungalow on Davey Street in Hazel Park, MI and it was in Hazel Park where she lived for nearly 70 years until the time of her passing.
Shirley continued to work outside the home until 1957 just prior to the birth of her first child Douglas. Her second child Paul was born in 1964 and Shirley continued to be a stay at home mom and was even a Cub Scout den mother from 1965 until 1969. Around 1972 she began to work in the Hazel Park School system at Hoover Elementary as a teachers aide which allowed her to share the schedule of Paul while he finished up elementary school there at Hoover. After Paul got to high school she went back to being a full time mom and homemaker and shortly thereafter became a Grandmother to James and Kate.
Shirley enjoyed bowling greatly for many years and was involved with several different teams over the years and continued to be involved until nearly 80 years of age. She was talented with needle and thread and enjoyed sewing in her spare time and Lester even set up a sewing room for her upstairs in a spare bedroom in their second home, the "Big Red Brick House" on the corner of Evelyn and Hughes where she made many things for her treasured grandchildren Kate and James, some of which are still in our her children’s homes as a reminder of her skill and caring. They lived in the house on Evelyn until the year of Lester’s passing, 2015.
In 2015 she moved to a new place of residence in American House/Baldwin House in Hazel Park for the remainder of her life and lived independently literally until the day she went into the hospital for the final time, She made many new friends of all ages both residents and staff alike while she lived there. She was very active there and loved to participate in all the activities including the live entertainments with her many friends there. There was her very favorite, bingo, as well as Wii bowling, exercise classes, movies, puzzles including big jigsaws, and her favorite, word searches. Shirley fell ill the day after Christmas, was hospitalized and passed on Saturday morning January 7th, 2023 and will be dearly missed by many family and friends alike.
Visitation will be on Sunday, January 15th from 3:00 pm to 7:00 pm with the Funeral Service at 7:00 pm at Hopcroft Funeral Home, 31145 John R. Road, (1 block N. of 13 Mile Road, west side of John R. Road), Madison Heights, Michigan. Burial will be at Christian Memorial Cemetery, Rochester Hills, Michigan.
Donations in Shirley’s memory can be made to the donor’s choice of charity.
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