‘A giant of a man’

DENTON – A well-known and respected Caroline County patriot, Army combat veteran, raconteur and artisan has passed away.

Longtime Caroline County Commissioner Larry Porter expressed the sentiments of many on hearing the news. “A tremendous loss for Caroline County and me personally. R. I. P. my friend,” he posted on Facebook.

James Ormand Baker, 93, of Denton died Tuesday evening, Oct. 14, 2025.

John Gondeck of Denton posted his condolences on Facebook. “What a great man, what a great loss,” he wrote. “The stories he shared about his military career to his rock collection, to his love for Jesus, he always had something to share. He will be missed.”

“Such a huge loss for our Caroline County community,” posted Caroline County Planning and Codes Director Crystal Dadds. “Mr. Baker was truly one of a kind — always honest, full of stories, and never afraid to speak his mind. … Rest easy, Mr. Baker. You made a lasting impact and you’ll truly be missed.”

Born Feb 1, 1932, Baker was born in Caroline County, the son of James Henry Baker Jr. and Mary Ellen Cheezum. A true son of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, he could trace his maternal Caroline County roots to the 1640s. His Baker ancestors arrived on the Delmarva Peninsula before the Revolutionary War and migrated west from the Mispillion Hundred in Delaware to the Burrsville area and then to the “Central” area of Caroline County, where they remained.

Known as Ormand to his childhood family and friends, Baker graduated from Caroline High School in 1949 in the school’s last 11^th grade graduating class.

Baker joined the Maryland National Guard’s 29th Division based in Denton in March 1950, less than four months before the start of the Korean War. He entered the U.S. Army in 1952 as an infantryman, serving a combat tour in the Korean War and earning a Purple Heart. Following the armistice, he served a second tour in Korea.

With money he had saved, he paid cash for his first new car, a 1954 Ford coupe with a 460 police interceptor engine.

He contemplated leaving the Army, but a recruiter persuaded him to reenlist with the offer of teaching a 4-week rifle skills course to ROTC cadets at Fork Union Military Academy in Virginia. He would later be assigned duties as rifle platoon sergeant and instructor at other colleges.

While on this tour, he met Naomi Carolyn Jackson of Brookneal, Virginia, and married her on Nov. 5, 1954. They not only lived in several states, they loved to travel and visited all 50 states – mostly in their large RV – and “a whole bunch of foreign countries,” Baker said in October 2024.

“My wife said we moved 13 times in 10 years, and that was about the truth,” Baker said.

Baker went on to serve two combat tours in Vietnam and was awarded a Bronze Star for valor and an Air Medal. He retired from the Army in 1972 in Hampton, Virginia. He was a National Park Service Ranger, becoming a certified emergency medical technician, and later was a Safety Engineer. He earned both a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree.

Jim and Carolyn Baker opened a rock and gem shop that specialized in handmade custom jewelry, including faceted stones, and searched for rock specimens during their many travels. 

During their nearly 50-year marriage, they celebrated the birth of their four children and many grandchildren. Following Carolyn’s death in 2004, Baker returned to Caroline County, living in his childhood home. He married Janet Melfa in 2011. They also enjoyed traveling and, as artisans, they ran the 4th Street Gallery in Denton.

Baker attended Ames Methodist Church in Hobbs. “He loved to go crabbing and stayed active up until his passing, including tending an enormous garden and cutting and splitting his own firewood,” his family wrote in his obituary published by Moore Funeral Home in Denton. “He was an expert in the flora and fauna and the history and people of Caroline County. Jim was always ready to provide a helping hand to various local activities and felt like he never met a stranger. He was a devoted and loving husband, father, pawpaw, family member, and friend to many.”

Baker was active in Caroline County politics and was elected to the Republican Central Committee in 2022 at the age of 90. The Saturday before his death, he was busy with GOP fundraisers.

“We lost a giant of a man last night,” posted the Caroline County GOP Oct. 15 on Facebook. “Jim always showed up, never did anything halfway, and told it like it is. Jim helped both set up and clean up for our Sporting Clay Shoot this past Saturday, (Oct. 11), won the shotgun raffle, and had even planned to shoot until he realized it would be just a little much for him to make it through 15 stations. And Saturday afternoon he headed down to Cambridge for Delegate (Tom) Hutchinson’s fundraiser.”

“Oh my!! I am so shocked and saddened to receive this news today! Just a great sincere and genuine man!” Hutchinson posted Oct. 15 on Facebook.

Baker was a life member of Veterans of Foreign Wars and a member of American Legion Caroline Post 29, frequently participating in many Legion activities, especially karaoke or playing bar bingo while having a Coke.

In June 2025, he was awarded the “Ambassador for Peace Medal” by the Korean Consul General of the Korean Embassy.

Baker was preceded in death by his wives, his sister Katherine Vair, and a grandchild. He is survived by his four children: David Baker and his wife Catherine of Denton; Leslie Baker and his wife Lisa Franklin of Charles City, Virginia; Mary Baker of Newport News, Virginia; and Vicki Rowe and her husband Pat of Hampton, Virginia. Also surviving are 12 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren, and one great-great grandchild.

A celebration of life will be held at 11 a.m. Oct. 23 at Moore Funeral Home in Denton, preceded by a 10 a.m. visitation. A fellowship and sharing of stories and memories will be held following the service at American Legion Post 29, 9238 Legion Road, Denton. Burial will be private at Arlington National Cemetery at a date to be determined.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to the Wesley ME Church Preservation Group, 10750 Garland Road, Denton, MD, a 501(c)(3) non-profit caring for the church and cemetery near Burrsville, Maryland.