DELPHOS — When Linda Baker moved to Delphos in 1980 from Galion for a
fresh start with her two children, she never imagined she would embrace
her new community and 35 years later, she would still be here working
to preserve its history.
“I was just graduating from Bowling Green
State University and I attended a job fair in Columbus,” Baker
recalled. “I met Arden Blythe, the Delphos City Schools superintendent
at the time, and I applied for the position of librarian at the high
school. I interviewed along with another girl I went to college with and
I got it.”
The rest, as they say, is history. Baker spent 28
years as a library/media specialist at Jefferson High School, coached
volleyball and started the district’s post prom effort in 1989. She also
served as president of the Delphos Education Association for two years,
during which she coordinated two special events: “Teachers Touch
Lives,” where former graduates chose a teacher who made a difference in
their lives and a reception was held; and “Back to School,” where
community members were invited to teach a class for a day.
“I just thought everyone should be on the same page and have an interest in their school,” Baker said.
Baker
volunteered for the American Cancer Society at the Allen County Relay
for Life for two years and when it came time to start a Relay for Life
in Delphos, Baker jumped on board on the first steering committee and
for the next eight years, would serve as captain for the high school
staff team or for her church, Trinity United Methodist.
“Cancer haw touched everyone,” Baker said. “It brought so many of the community together for one cause.”
Baker was also on the planning committee for the Darlene Alt Memorial Run/Walk.
In 2002, Baker was asked by Teresa Bradstock to join the Canal Commission as a trustee.
“I
said sure. Little did I know what that would entail,” Baker said with a
laugh. “I had visited the museum in its infancy when it was very small.
It isn’t so small anymore.”
Baker would spend the next 13 years
putting her librarian skills to the test organizing and categorizing at
the museum. She performs research for signage on museum exhibits to
provide an enhanced visitor experience and has helped with archiving and
putting items in a data base using a numbering system.
“They call me the organizer,” Baker said. “The librarian in me wants to categorize everything and put everything in order.”
She
also put her computer skills to task putting together the museum’s
newsletter for seven years. The publication, “New Eddies in the
Current,” is mailed out to the museum membership. She is also one of
three trustees who writes monthly “On the Banks of Yesteryear” articles
for The Delphos Herald.
When she saw how much more the museum
could offer the public, she talked with other trustees and they were
able to open the museum on the weekends making it possible to double the
hours of availability. She does the volunteer scheduling and most of
the student tours from schools.
“I do spend a lot of hours a the
museum,” Baker said. “I and another of the trustees always joke that as
long as we are up at the museum, we don’t have to be home cleaning.”
Baker
hasn’t limit her time to Delphos’s history. She also served on the
Mission Committee at Trinity and coordinated volunteers for Our Daily
Bread soup kitchen for four years in a joint venture with Salem
Mennonite Church. More than 100 different people, including members of
the Jefferson High School basketball team, got to directly experience
serving those less fortunate.
“I served on the Mission Committee
twice,” Baker said. “I really didn’t know what the committee did until I
served on it. You can’t understand something until you’re a part of it.
I stepped down to let new people come in so more could grasp what the
committee did.”
Baker also shares her singing voice at church with her 30-year membership in the choir.
“I love music and it’s a big part of my life,” Baker said. “When I’m struggling, music helps me and I love to harmonize.”
At the young age of 72, Baker isn’t ready to slow down just yet.
“I
still enjoy the museum and I don’t feel like I’m done there yet. I
don’t get involved in a lot of things so I can give what I am doing 100
percent,” she said. “I usually don’t stay with things for a long time. I
find something that interests me and work on it until I accomplish what
I set out to do. There’s still more to do at the museum.”
Baker said she gets her go-get-‘em attitude from her mother.
“Mom
was always a doer,” she recalled. “She was a Girl Scout leader and a
volunteer with the March of Dimes. I remember watching her volunteer for
a lot of causes. When I was in fourth grade, the teacher asked me what I
wanted to be when I grew up and I said, ‘a Girl Scout leader.’ Everyone
else wanted to be a doctor or a firefighter.”
Baker’s daughter, Michele Baker-Lindsay, and her twins live in Dayton, Tennessee. Her son, James, lives in Delphos.