Mrs. J. L. Baird aka "Billie or Wilma Baird"
Some Photos from Over the Ages

Mom Baird OB Photo

Wilma (Billie) Baird, Bogart, GA - OBITUARY

Now online 4/5/2015 official obituaty

www.legacy.com/obituaries/onlineathens/obituary.aspx?n=wilma-baird&pid=174563879&fhid=3592 reads

"Wilma (Billie) Baird, 103, passed away on Tuesday March 31, 2015. Born March 8, 1912, in Decatur, Illinois, she was the daughter of William Thomas and Grace Fay Funkhouser. Billie was active in the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, P.E.O., University Woman's Club, and the Janet Rankin Foundation. She volunteered at the GA State Botanical Gardens Visitor Center from its beginning until age 96, and won a Botanical Gardens Volunteer of the Year award. Billie was earlier a licensed pilot. In 1968, her husband Lloyd joined the University of Athens Health Service and helped turn it into an accredited hospital. Billie and Lloyd were active at the Athens County Club. Lloyd died in 1973, but Billie played golf until she was 94. Billie lived a very full and rich life, and will be missed and remembered with fondness and love. Her husband, James Lloyd Baird, and her sister, Ruth Acox from Sarasota, Florida, preceded Billie in death. She is survived by sons James Kendall Baird (Carol) of Dalton, GA, Michael Lloyd Baird (Heidi) of Morro Bay, CA, four grandchildren, Sandy Baird (JT) of Oakland, CA, Robert Baird (Jennifer) of San Jose, CA, Corey Baird of Atlanta, GA, Richard Baird (Lisa) of Cartersville, GA, and four great-grandchildren. Read Billie's blog at mikebaird.com/mom/ In lieu of flowers please donate to a charity of your choice. Services will be private.
Share your thoughts, memories and stories at the guest-book online at bernsteinfuneralhome.com or on Mom's Facebook page at facebook.com/billie.baird.3https://www.facebook.com/billie.baird.3

The published link was in error, please use www.facebook.com/billie.baird.3
Bernstein Funeral Home and Cremation Service are in charge of arrangements.
3/8/1912 - 3/31/2015
- See more at: www.legacy.com/obituaries/onlineathens/obituary.aspx?n=wilma-baird&pid=174563879&fhid=3592#sthash.Y6M9wJZp.dpuf

Guestbook - you can sign at Sign Guest Book for Wilma Baird at dignitymemorial

Guestbook for Wilma G. Baird

Guestbook of Wilma G. Baird

Submitted: Wilma (Billie) Baird, 103, passed away on Tuesday March 31, 2015. Born March 8, 1912, in Decatur, Illinois, she was the daughter of William Thomas and Grace Fay Funkhouser. Billie was active in the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, P.E.O., University Woman's Club, and the Janet Rankin Foundation. She volunteered at the GA State Botanical Gardens Visitor Center from its beginning until age 96, and won a Botanical Gardens Volunteer of the Year award. Billie was earlier a licensed pilot. In 1968, her husband Lloyd joined the University of Athens Health Service and helped turn it into an accredited hospital. Billie and Lloyd were active at the Athens County Club. Lloyd died in 1973, but Billie played golf until she was 94. Billie lived a very full and rich life, and will be missed and remembered with fondness and love. Her husband, James Lloyd Baird, and her sister, Ruth Acox from Sarasota, Florida, preceded Billie in death. She is survived by sons James Kendall Baird (Carol) of Dalton, GA, Michael Lloyd Baird (Heidi) of Morro Bay, CA, four grandchildren, Sandy Baird (JT) of Oakland, CA, Robert Baird (Jennifer) of San Jose, CA, Corey Baird of Atlanta, GA, Richard Baird (Lisa) of Cartersville, GA, and four great-grandchildren. Read Billie's blog at mikebaird.com/mom/ In lieu of flowers please donate to a charity of your choice. Services Private. Share your thoughts, memories and stories at the guest-book online at Bernstein of Athens
http://www.bernsteinfuneralhome.com/en_US/locations/47/4765/common/library/article/name/safety-home
or on Mom's Facebook page at facebook.com/billie.baird.3

Mom's Facebook page is facebook.com/billie.baird.3

Words for Mom's memorial from Billie's son Mike Baird 08 April 2015

Caring and Becoming my Best Friend

Parents care for their children, then the children care for their parents... that's how it usually goes.

For my Mom, the primary relationship wasn't my having to care for her, so much as it was that we became best friends, late in life.

Because I lived in California, Joanne Buley became my proxy, confident, and great friend like one could never imagine, to make this best friend relationship with my Mom possible, while providing the care I could not.

I can't say enough about how important Joanne was in caring for Mom, and becoming Mom's loving companion.

Otherwise Mom likely would have moved to California, and would not have enjoyed such a rich last eight years of her life.

Embracing Change and Modernity

I was always very proud of my Mom.

I particularly admired her strength and independence.

After Dad died 42 years ago from a heart attack, Mom continued eating healthy meals and pursuing an active lifestyle.

Unitarian-Universalists both, my parents embraced liberalism and lived a sense of what was right and just, especially in supporting civil rights.

They thus raised me to become a better person than I might have been.

Mom did have her pride and a little bias in her sense of "place in society," not mean-spirited, but the result of having been brought up 100 years ago.

I was impressed at how Mom embraced the many changes in society that she experienced across 103 years.

With Joanne's help, Mom even had a Facebook Page, and we used an iPad to have video conference calls together.

Mom, more than anyone her age that I know, understood what the internet could do, and the powers it could unleash.

In part because of Mom's adopted modernity, we were really able to become even better friends, in that good friends have that special respect for each other's beliefs, actions, and abilities. I sent Mom and Joanne a picture postcard several times a week, with a story and some photos to share.

Strength

Mom last visited us in California in 2001, when she still lived in her house in Athens.

It was on that momentous day September 11, 2001, that I called Mom and told her that she would have to reschedule her flight to visit us as our country was under attack.

I can't imaging, at 89 years of age, I would have been able to fly across country soon thereafter like Mom did.

Maybe because Mom learned to fly and had a pilot's license in her youth, that she found such strength.

Family

My daughter Sandy married her girl friend JT in 2009, and they gave birth to a child named Felix, whom they love raising.

Sandy and JT are experiencing that wonderful part of life of being a family in love and living in their own house.

Mom accepted their Lesbian relationship, and genuinely wished them well. Mom was ambivalent about sharing her acceptance, and a planned visit by Sandy and JT to Athens was canceled. I'll always agonize a bit over that. Gay rights had rushed upon us, and glad it did, but it stumbled this hurdle.

Mom's Friends

I have gotten to know quite a few of Mom's friends and staff here at Highland Hills, fairly well.

Terre, Leslie, Claire and others from outside were so generous with their time and visits and calls.

[Please include also the names of Mom's other friends who might be present]

When Mom first moved in she was for some long time depressed and angry, but with your love and companionship, she soon flourished and genuinely enjoyed the last eight years of her life.

I thank you all for making my Mom's life so rich.

The End

Mom so much wanted to die peacefully, and that she did.

Mentally sharp and physically capable until the end, we can all wish to end our journey with such dignity.

Mom's ashes will be spread with those of Dad, at Cloudland Canyon, GA in a private family service.

Mike Michael L. Baird mike@mikebaird.com ? (805) 704-2064 http://facebook.com/mikebaird

NEW - 5 legal-sized pages of the Baird Brown Genealogy are posted at http://picasaweb.google.com/mikebaird/2007_11_10_baird_Brown_family_tree
and also at Flickr at the “Baird Brown Genealogy” set at http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikebaird/sets/72157603069748544/ (the same images are posted for redundancy). James Lloyd Baird (Athens, GA, circa 1970), deceased father of Michael Lloyd Baird, created these 5 legal-sized pages documenting his research on the family tree. Michael "Mike" Lloyd Baird, Morro Bay, CA 2007 photographed these documents - mike at mikebaird.com. These images are saved at the highest quality and resolution possible with an 8MP Canon 20D digital camera.

Click a thumbnail below to enlarge. Some files may be slow to load. Best viewed with Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher with automatic image re-sizing. Edited by Mike Baird 11/10/2007 . This page is http://mikebaird.com/mom/

4 MB PowerPoint presentation (note: very long download!) (from 2002 90th birthday party)

Born March 8, 1912... the photos below are more-or-less in chronological order...

(<= 1600x1200 version for printing)

Other photos

July 15, 2000 Athens, Pictures

<<== 5x7 print size, use for best quality 5x7 print
<<== composite just for fun

July 15-16, 2004, Mike and Jim's visit to Athens, GA; Mom 92, on a walk around the neighborhood

July 18, 2004 Mike and Mom walking Homewood Hills, we see five deer nearby.

This photo was taken in 2004 for the church directory at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Athens, GA

July 15, 2005 Mike visits Athens, Jim and Corey come July 16, 2005.

(Corey's girl friend Kelly is shown at the left in this photo... she was not in Athens with us... this photo is from Corey's new Casio Exilim EXZ750 7MP Digital Camera storage card)
July 16, 2005, Jim and Corey join Mike and Mom in Athens, GA

(Mom is 93 years old and looking better than before)

Mom's 94th Birthday - March 8, 2006

March 2 - 9, 2006, Mike Visits Athens - Jim comes over for part of Saturday 3-4-06.
Mom is turning 94 on 3-8-06, and looking better than ever.
We attended the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Athens service on Sunday 3-5-06, where our good friend and minister, the Reverend Terre Balof, welcomed us and even had the congregation sing "Happy Birthday Billie."

<= this is the highest-resolution version available for best printing
March 8, 2006 - at the State Botanical Garden of Georgia, where Mom volunteers

<= click to enlarge

Mom wrote this letter to the Editor of the Athens Banner Herald, and it was published in April 6, 2006 (Athens, GA)
http://onlineathens.com/stories/040606/letters_20060406043.shtml (print-ready version) Free registration may be required to access this page
"Billie Baird: Library employees deserve more money

This is my first letter to an editor in my 94 years. It is to bring attention to the low salaries paid to the employees of the Athens-Clarke County Library.

If the county commissioners would visit the library, they would see it is always busy. A great number of programs go on all day, and most evenings. Babies, teens and adults are educated and entertained. There is computer training, book reviews are held at different times, there is a large-print book section, Sunday entertainment in the auditorium and even a large, quiet area for University of Georgia students.

For all the work they do, the employees deserve a larger budget, for they make life better for thousands of us.

Billie Baird"

Visit 3-10-07 to celebrate Mom's 95th Birthday in Athens, GA
You can also see these four photos on the Baird family set at Flickr and 10march2007 set
Related video including these photos and some video footage is posted at Youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQvclsUcanU

(More like this one at Picasaweb)

Mom at age 95 or 96 (2007 or 2008) serving at the volunteer desk at the U. of Georgia Botanical Gardens.
Looking beautiful.

More recent photos of Mom Baird are now being pisted to Flickr, including

Baird Brown Genealogy

2008-04-06-corey-mom-highland

2010-01-03-mom-baird-bogart-ga

Mom Baird 100th Birthday March 8, 2012 Bogart, GA

2013-03-8 to 12 Mom Baird 101st Birthday

Mrs. J. L. Baird aka "Wilma" or "Billie" Baird, Athens, Georgia DOB 3-8-1912
go to mikebaird.com

Mrs. J. L. Baird aka "Billie or Wilma Baird" Some Photos from Over the Ages

Mrs. J. L. Baird aka "Billie or Wilma Baird"
Some Photos from Over the Ages