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Webster Mayor Bob Baker remembered as 'man of vision'

By Rose Hooper
Robert Baker

Robert Baker

 Webster town board members will remember Mayor Bob Baker as a man with vision, a man who understood that timing was critical.

Baker, 55, died Tuesday, March 7, at Baptist Hospital in Winston-Salem while waiting for a heart transplant.

"I'll remember him with a sense of direction, always charging us forward," said board member Louise Bedford. "Bob would tell those of us on the planning board, 'Let's get moving on this,' and give us a specific deadline for a project. He would always say, 'We don't want to drag our feet on this.'"

Board member Billie Bryson agreed.

"He always wanted us to be thinking of a long-range plan, where we wanted Webster to be in five or 10 years," she said.

Mayor since being elected in 1997, Baker also served on the Webster Town Board from 1989-1993.

"I think Bob genuinely enjoyed serving the people of Webster," Vice Mayor Steve Gray said. "He was concerned with its future growth and expansion but also wanted it to keep its small town appeal. I'll miss his vision and leadership."
Perhaps no other person in Webster had such a storehouse of knowledge about the town as did Baker, board member Skip Englebright said.

"Bob had such a wealth of knowledge of Webster's history, especially all the ordinances, which he knew by heart," she said. "As far as Webster, he was a walking encyclopedia."

Baker had lived in Webster the past 47 years.

"The mayor was an outstanding individual, a progressive thinker and a was truly a public servant," said Jackson County Manager Jay Denton. "He dedicated a tremendous amount of time and energy to the town of Webster. He was an asset to Jackson County and will be greatly missed."

Bakers' wife, Evelyn, has served as Denton's administrative assistant since July 1999.

Baker converted his personal workroom into a meeting place for the town board. Under his leadership, Webster grew by voluntarily annexing additional property. Also under his leadership, the zoning ordinance was revised and Webster's long-range plans for extraterritorial jurisdiction were charted.

A native of Louisville, Ky., he graduated in 1964 from Sylva-Webster High School, where he was a member of the Golden Eagle football team. He earned a degree from Blanton Business College in 1966.

In addition to his wife, he is survived by a son, Scott Baker of Sylva; two brothers; and a grandson. Services are planned for this Saturday, March 11, at Webster Baptist Church.

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