Sheila Ann Baker

Sheila Ann Baker - Virginia Beach, VA - Sheila Ann Baker, died Monday, January 23, 2006 in Virginia Beach, Virginia from Breast Cancer. Sheila, the only child of Louis and Elizabeth Gallaher, was born in Savannah, Georgia on October 11, 1922. Sheila spent her childhood in Savannah and then moved to Brooklyn, New York, in 1934. Sheila graduated from James Madison High School in 1941, and worked for the Navy as a civilian employee at the Brooklyn, Navy Yard during the Second World War. Following the war, she met her husband, Halmer L. Baker, and they were married on September 17, 1947. Sheila's husband Halmer L. Baker, better known as "Ham" was one of the country's recognized leaders in the electrical utility business. Ham served as president of Savannah Electric Company from 1967 until 1971, when he became president of Stone & Webster, Incorporated. In 1976, Sheila and Ham moved to Houston, Texas where they resided for the next thirty years. In 2004, Sheila, now a widow, moved to Virginia Beach, VA, to be closer to her family. Sheila worked her entire life in a variety of retail and secretarial positions. In November 2004, Sheila retired from Lord and Taylor Department Stores after a career that spanned thirty years. Sheila is survived be her son, Tim, a retired Naval Officer, and now serving as a Federal Senior Executive for the Department of Defense; daughter-in-law, Noreen, English Department Chair at Bishop Sullivan Catholic High School, Virginia Beach; grandsons, Grant, a Fifth Grade Teacher at White Oak Elementary School, Virginia Beach; Reid, a 2006 graduate of Randolph-Macon College in Virginia; Keith, a rising Junior at Randolph-Macon College; and Erin Murray-Baker, Grant's wife. Erin is a Fourth Grade Teacher at Woodstock Elementary School, Virginia Beach. A Mass of the Resurrection will be celebrated on Friday, June 30, 2006, at 10:00 am, at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, Savannah. Interment will follow at Catholic Cemetery. Remembrances: In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations are made to St. Gregory the Great School, 5343 Virginia Beach Blvd. Virginia Beach, VA 23462, where Sheila established a Tuition Assistance Grant program to assist needy students. Savannah Morning News June 28, 2006 Please sign our Obituary Guest Book at www.savannahnow.com