Lee BAKER

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BAKER: Lee Dale. On the morning of December 22, 2014 surrounded by his family, Dale passed away at the University of Chicago Hospital after a long battle with cardiac disease. He was 74. Dale was born in Brandon, MB. on July 4, 1940 to Cecil and Julia (nee Cousins) Baker. He will be sadly missed by his wife Donna, son Craig (Danielle), grandsons Benjamin and Matthew, daughter Karen. He also leaves to mourn his brother Lyle (Nancy Stanley) and nephews Jonathan (Christine), sons Austin and Elliot, and Christopher (Tanya). He was predeceased by brother Garth in 2007. Dale graduated from University of Nebraska for both Undergraduate and Master's Degrees in Agricultural Engineering in 1972, meeting Donna, his beloved wife of 47 years while in Lincoln. His son Craig (wife Danielle Lashus Baker, grandsons Benjamin and Matthew) moved with him from Nebraska to Michigan State (where daughter Karen was born). He then moved to Ithaca, NY where he was a valued member of the Cornell extension. The family moved to Naperville, IL in 1981 for Dale to work in safety standards at International Harvester. He was heavily involved in the creation of U.S and International safety sign standard that have prevented countless accidents from occurring in almost every industry. After retiring in 2000, Dale spent his time traveling around the world with Donna, photographing his beloved grandsons, listening to NPR, and coaching the Blackhawks and Bears from the comfort of his family room. He was a man of carefully chosen words and was known to let an entire round of Taboo go by if he could not find the right phrase. Dale was a true gentleman, a wonderful husband, a patient and loving father, and a thoughtful friend. He never lost his soft Canadian accent or his love for Manitoba. Dale would ask, in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Kiva.org, an organization that gives small business loans to farmers in Africa.

As published in Brandon Sun on Jan 17, 2015