Phyllis Baker ’66 Sharpe
Phyllis Baker ’66 Sharpe of Ocala, Fla., died Sept. 24, 2016, after a courageous ten month battle with Amyloidosis. She died peacefully surrounded by her loving family.
She was born at home to Margaret and Paul Baker and raised in Holland. She graduated from Holland Christian High School in 1962. She attended Hope College and Northwestern College in Orange City, Iowa, for her undergraduate degree in liturgical music. She then moved to Florida to obtain her Masters in Social Work from Florida State University.
Phyllis was a concert grade pianist, and up until her illness, often practiced three to four hours per day.
She generously shared her gift with others as an accompanist for a variety of groups throughout her life, most recently as a choir and worship musician for the Unitarian Universalist Church of Marion County.
She also enjoyed working with several performance artists from the Villages area. She served on the boards of Central Florida Community College, Interfaith Services, Audubon Society, the Appleton Museum and several others. She used her training as a social worker with Catholic Adoption Services and volunteered in her social work capacity with Interfaith Services.
She was an avid reader and will be greatly missed by the women of her book club, a group she had been a part of for over twenty five years. She worked for many years with the League of Women Voters, realizing the importance of an informed electorate to our democracy.
She enjoyed traveling all over the world, having visited all seven continents. She celebrated her 50th birthday on the ice at the north pole. She was an enthusiastic birder; often traveling to a specific state or country in search of a bird to add to her life list.
Phyllis leaves behind two loving sons and five grandchildren who brightened her life. Son, Dr. Charles DeWild, wife Laurel, and their children, Ethan, Audrey and Abigail. Son, Richard Sharpe, wife Wendy, and their children Brianna and Samantha.
Siblings; Dr. Joan Baker ’63 and husband Ben James of Birchrunville, PA; Cathy Bouws and husband Bryan of Holland, MI; Dr. Steve Baker ’73 and wife Sue of Indian River, MI; Christine DeJonge and husband Bruce of Zeeland, MI.