Created in 2013, the Kenneth & Mary Baker Charitable Fund supports the arts in Washington County.
Mary Baker, known locally as "Tommy," was born April 11, 1946 in Johnstown to Mary E. Gosbee Sargent and C. Clifford Sargent.
After graduating from Tolman High School in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, Tommy attended Rhode Island College and graduated with a degree in special education a minor in elementary education in 1969. Additionally, she attended Washington & Jefferson College to complete her degree in English.
On June 27, 1970, Tommy married Kenneth L. Baker.
Ken, is a 1968 graduate of Washington & Jefferson College. He subsequently attended the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, graduating in 1971. He then joined Peacock Keller for one year prior to serving a three-year term as an attorney for the Judge Advocate General Corps of the United States Army, at the end of which he returned to Washington County and Peacock Keller.
While Ken was in the military, Tommy served as the director of the post nursery at Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn, New York. Upon her return to Washington County, she was a teacher in the Washington School District and the Intermediate Unit. She had a great passion for her vocation and was devoted to her students. Additionally, she enjoyed reading, gardening, and arts and crafts.
Ken has been an active participant in community service organizations such as the Boy Scouts of America, Washington Rotary Club, Washington County Bar Association, Southwestern Pennsylvania Easter Seals Society, First Presbyterian Church, Friends of the Library of Washington, Pennsylvania, and the Washington Jazz Society.
Ken and Tommy have a son named Daniel.