Ruth E. (Gilfillen) Baker

Ruth Ellen Baker, 93 of Quincy, Ohio went to her heavenly home on Monday, November 15, 2021. A leap year baby, born on February 29, 1928, she was the daughter of the late Vernon Gilfillen and Clara (Leckey) Gilfillen. She married her childhood sweetheart, John E. Baker, on March 16, 1945 and they enjoyed over 60 years of marriage.

Ruth Ellen was a graduate of Green Twp. High School (now Fairlawn High School) and she took real estate courses at Edison State College earning her realtor’s license.  Ruth Ellen also served as a bus driver for Graham Local Schools for 35 years. She adored the generations of students and their families as she transported them to school and events over the decades. She never met a stranger and knew the history of many different towns and families within the tri-county area.  In addition to bus driving, Ruth Ellen worked on the family’s dairy farm. After she retired from bus driving, she and John traveled all over the country together. 

John and Ruth Ellen were also in a card club with friends since their youth. On a regular basis, the Bakers, Howells, Sargeants, and Verdiers would gather, play pinochle and share adventures and friendship for over eight decades. She taught her children and her grandchildren how to play cards, especially Ginn Rummy. Occasionally she would even let someone else win. Ruth Ellen was also musically inclined. She played the piano and sang in the church choir as well as the Sweet Adeline’s for several years. She and John also showed Shetland Ponies and she took great pride in owning and showing several champion ponies.

Without question, Ruth Ellen’s greatest joy was spending time with her family. She and John drove across the country to attend her children’s high school and college basketball, football, baseball, softball, and volleyball games. She also loved to watch her children participate in Champaign County 4-H program. The tradition continued when her grandchildren started participating in their own activities. She and John drove countless hours to watch horse shows, basketball games, soccer games, golf matches, swim meets and dog shows. When asked what she considered the “highlight of her life” on her 90th birthday, she said “ watching my kids and grandkids play ball and show their animals.” If there was any activity in which a family member was participating, John and Ruth Ellen would be there, front and center. She will be remembered for her extremely social nature, uncanny memory, her independent and competitive spirit and her unwavering dedication to all she loved.

Ruth Ellen is survived by her three children, Larry (Jane) Baker of Belle Center, Ohio; Samuel Baker of Miami County, Ohio; Joylyn (Lindsay) Finch of Galion, Ohio. Her four grandchildren, Melanie (Nicholas) DiFeo of Powell, Ohio; Alex (Michelle) Baker of Sleepy Hollow, New York; Elaine (Jeff) Slaughter of Franklin, Ohio; and John Finch of Galion, Ohio. She also has two great-grand children, Jack Alexander Baker and Frankie May Slaughter and many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her husband, John Elbert Baker and brother, Vernon Richard Gilfillen.

Funeral Services will be held Saturday November 20, 2021 at 12 PM at Cromes-Edwards Funeral Home 302 S. Main Ave Sidney with Rev Eileen Hix officiating. Burial will follow at Cedar Point Cemetery in Pasco, Ohio. Friends may visit from 10:30 AM up until the time of service at the funeral home. Memorial contributions may be made to the Donors Charity of Choice in Ruth's memory. Condolences may be expressed to the Baker family at our website, www.cromesfh.com

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