John Baker II dies; lawyer, world traveler
 |
|
||||||||||
Even being told he had cancer didn't slow down John M. Baker II.
In the six years after his diagnosis, the retired real-estate lawyer hiked mountains, traveled the world and wrote regular dispatches to his wide web of dear friends all over the country.
And he married his high-school sweetheart.
"He tried to respond like he'd licked it," said his former law partner, John Ludlow of Bellevue. "He was a very intellectually active man, a very physically active man, a pretty amazing guy."
Mr. Baker died last Monday (Jan. 15) of non-Hodgkins lymphoma. He was 55.
He grew up in Omaha, Neb., and earned a law degree from the University of Iowa College of Law in 1970. He then joined the Navy and served as a lawyer in the elite Judge Advocate General's Corps (JAG).
Out of the Navy, he signed on with a Bellevue law firm that would eventually become Hanson Baker Ludlow & Drumheller. He was known for his quick legal mind and ability to delve expertly into the complicated world of title law and real-estate transactions, partner Ludlow said.
One of his defining cases was handling the sale of a large downtown Seattle hotel. And he was especially proud of serving on the Kirkland Planning Commission, helping to rewrite land-use laws for the city.
He also served on the Board of Trustees of Overlake Hospital Medical Center and was a trustee of the Overlake Foundation.
"He was a very diligent, creative attorney," said Ludlow, who affectionately called Mr. Baker "J.B."
But Mr. Baker's true passions were the outdoors and travel. He made about a half-dozen safari trips to Africa, where he revered the dwindling wildlife, especially the gorillas of Rwanda. Around 1990, with a lot of savings and investments under his belt, he retired at 45.
"He believed in living every minute," said his wife, Gay. "He believed you don't have one minute to waste."
Seven years ago, newly divorced and without kids, Mr. Baker tracked down Gay, his high-school love who was still in Omaha. She had just seen the movie "Sleepless in Seattle," she recalled, and on her way home she wondered what happened to John Baker. "I walked into the house and he called," she said. When they married three years ago, they bought a houseboat on Portage Bay.
Other surviving family members are his father, John Baker Sr. of Lincoln, Neb., sisters Nancy Baker of Kentucky and Mimi Wickless of Lincoln, and his stepsons, Alexander and Morgan Livingston of Omaha.
A service is set for 4 p.m. Feb. 2 at the Unity Church of Bellevue, 16330 N.E. Fourth St., Bellevue. Donations may go to The Nature Conservancy, 217 Pine St. #1100, Seattle, WA 98102.