Alfred James (A.J.) Baker
Alfred James (A.J.) Baker
September 2, 1939 — April 2, 2019
Alfred James (A.J.) Baker passed away on April 2, 2019, after a long battle with cancer. He was born Sept. 2, 1939, in Austin, Texas, to Noel James and Martha Stewart Baker and raised by his father and stepmother, Florence Biggers Baker, whom he loved dearly.
A.J. was a 1958 graduate of McCallum High School in Austin. He served in the U.S. Navy from 1958 to 1962, where he was stationed on the aircraft carrier USS Bon Homme Richard in the Pacific. After the Navy, he attended The University of Texas while working at Austin City Power Company. He retired in 1999 from 3M after 33 years. His second career was a rancher and pecan producer in Mason County until health issues forced him to sell his ranch and move to Marble Falls, Texas. He was very proud of his pecan crops, which earned him many awards, including four “best pecans in the state” blue ribbons from the Texas Department of Agriculture.
Throughout his life, A.J. had a passion for travel and visited 48 of the 50 states, Asia, Europe and Latin America. He took an active role in his children’s school activities and coached his son’s soccer team. He served as a volunteer and secretary for the Pontotoc Volunteer Fire Department of Pontotoc, Texas. He was involved in local politics, serving as a Precinct Chair of the Democratic Party of Mason County, Texas.
A.J. enjoyed genealogy research and was proud of his long U.S. and Texas lineage, which he traced to William Bradford of the Mayflower. He was an active member of The Descendants of Austin’s Old Three Hundred, The Sons of the Republic of Texas, and The National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution.
He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Lillie Honig Baker; two children, Skyla Baker of Okanogan, Washington, and Mark T. Baker of New York City; one granddaughter, Makaela Baker of Okanogan, Washington; his son-in-law, Andrés Muñoz Díazgranados of New York City; and one sister, Reta Ward of McDade, Texas.
A Celebration of Life will be held on Monday, April 8, at 11 a.m. at Clements Wilcox Funeral Home, Marble Falls.
Online condolences may be made at clementswilcoxfuneralhome.com.
