Joyce Rose Baker

Doctor Joyce Rose Baker, Professor Emeritus of Chemistry at Tennessee Wesleyan University, passed away on December 24, 2023, surrounded by family at Parkwest Medical Center. She was born on November 17, 1945, in Galion, Ohio. She was preceded in death by her parents, Lester G. and R. Janice Baker, and her brother, David, from Ohio.

Joyce is survived by her sister Janet Baker of Columbus, Ohio; her niece, Nancy Jones of Cincinnati, Ohio and two grandnephews, Alex and Shawn; her niece, Kara Kelley and two grandnieces, Olivia and Lauren of South Charleston, Ohio. Joyce was a native of Morrow County, Ohio, and longtime resident of Athens. She was a chemistry professor at TWU for 31 years. She also served as Chair of the Chemistry Department and Associate Dean of Natural Science and Mathematics. Her love of education began with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry from Ohio Northern University in 1967, and a Doctor of Philosophy from Texas A & M University in Analytical/Inorganic Chemistry in 1970. She enjoyed reading, traveling, birding (1,200 birds on life list), gardening, and hated mowing grass. Joyce’s garden is a certified wildlife habitat with many native plants including a silverbell tree and yellow buckeye tree. She named her beautiful garden, “Silverbell”.

A memorial service will be held at Trinity United Methodist Church, Athens, TN, on January 20, 2024, with visitation starting at 1:00 pm and 2:00 pm service and sharing of memories. The cremains will be buried in the family plot at Shauck Cemetery in Johnsville, Ohio, where six generations of her family are buried. A memorial service will be held in the cemetery, at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, donations in her memory are suggested to Tennessee Wesleyan University, 204
College St., Athens, TN 37303; Friends of the Library, 1289 Ingleside Drive, Athens, TN 37303 or Black
Swamp Bird Observatory, 13551 W. St. Rt.2, Oak Harbor, OH 43449-9480.