Patsy Anne Baker

Patsy Anne (Kaspar) Baker passed away on Tuesday January 23, 2024 after a battle with dementia. She was born on May 31,1936 in Tekamah, Nebraska to Charles and Hazel (Brown) Kaspar. The family moved to Oregon during her childhood. She graduated from Albany Union High School in Albany, Oregon in 1954. She attended the University of Oregon in Eugene and graduated from Portland State University with a degree in Music and a minor in Psychology. She performed in many musical performances as an Alto during her college years. She continued to sing professionally in her adult years, particularly at the First Congregational Church on Poplar Street in Terre Haute, Indiana, and with the Terre Haute Choral Society. She was a music teacher for the Vigo County School Corporation from the 1970's to 2007. She taught at Consolidated, Fayette, Davis Park, and Hoosier Prairie elementary schools. She was active in the Orff system of teaching music and attended many conventions with her good friend Norabelle Reed, a fellow music teacher. She was also a member of Sigma Alpha Iota, Terre Haute Alumnae Chapter for many years.
She married Kenneth M. Baker (deceased) in Salem, Oregon in July 1981, where they chose hand-crafted, custom-made wedding bands at a local crafts fair. She and Ken were married for 34 years until his death in 2015. They enjoyed traveling together throughout much of the United States, visiting her family in Oregon and Washington, and their daughter and grand-daughter in Massachusetts. They also traveled Internationally to Great Britain and then to Austria in 2000 when Patsy received a Lilly Grant to participate in the Classical Music Festival in Eisenstadt, Austria, at the Esterhazy Palace.
Patsy leaves her brother, John Kaspar and his wife Elaine, along with their children: LeAnne Ryweck, her son Ben Ryweck; Christine Bal and her children John Ryan Bal and Annie Bal; Shannon (Mitchell) Martin and her husband Christian Martin, and their children Isabelle Mitchell Martin and Erik Mitchell and his partner Shelby Teach. She also leaves her dear sister Judy Genelle Kaspar Starbird along with Judy's children: her daughter Amy (Hagerman) Phillips, Amy's daughter Lauren Moushey and her husband Tanner Moushey and their children: John, Dan, James, Elizabeth, Thomas and Benjamin Moushey, Amy's son Dustin Phillips and his wife Sharon (Jacobs) Phillips; Amy's children: Richard, Anthony, Anna and Cayden Phillips; Judy's son David Hagerman; Judy's step-daughter Danielle Starbird and her partner Dennis Battease, and their children: Audrey, Lydia and Parker Battease. Patsy also leaves her step-daughter Heidi (Baker) Doreika and her partner John Danyi, whom she loved as her own through the ups and downs of life, along with Heidi's daughter Emily (Beaulieu) Despres and her husband Dan Despres.
Visitation will be Saturday January 27, 2024 from 10:00 am until 12:00 pm in DeBaun Springhill Chapel with graveside services to follow at 12:30 pm in Woodlawn Cemetery with Pastor Larry Branham officiating.
In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to either the Altzheimer's Association or the Dementia Society of America.
To send flowers
to the family or plant a tree
in memory of Patsy Anne (Kaspar) Baker, please visit our floral store.