Date and paper of article unknown. Date of death, March 22, 1990.

Jessie Emma Baker
Special Eduation Pioneer

Jessie Emma Baker, 88, who campaigned for the educational rights of the mentally impaired during the 1950s and '60s, died Thursday evening in a local hospital.

A well-known Elk Grove resident, Mrs. Baker had a child with Down's Syndrome in the mid-1940s and, after learning there were no place for her son to attend school, started fighting for the educational needs of the mentally impaired.

She and five other families started an education program in 1950 at John Muir Elementary School, and she founded the Sacramento Association for Retarded Children, which later lead to a statewide organization.

Mrs. Baker lobbied the Legislature, asking for training centers, schools and money so the mentally impaired could lead productive lives and escape the institutionalization that was then the accepted care.

In 1964, the Jessie Baker Elementary School opened in the Elk Grove Unified School district as a school structured specifically for the education of the mentally impaired.

Mrs. Baker visited families for the disabled throughout the state and helped parents and educators in other cities set up educational programs.

She also worked with institutionalized children and sought help in upgrading living conditions at several facilities.

Mrs. Baker was Sacramento Soroptimist Club's "Woman of the Year" in 1962, Elk Grove's "Citizen of the Year" in 1964, and was runner-up for state "Mother of the Year" in 1966.

A native of Wisconsin, she had resided in Elk Grove for more than 60 years.

Mrs. Baker is survived by her sons, Royal of Sacramento, Conrad of Elk Grove and Clarence of Galt; six grandchildren; and 15 great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her husband, Lester.

A memorial service will be at 2 pm Friday in Elk Grove Park Pavilion in Elk Grove.

Arrangements were made through Nauman& Son Chapel.

The family requests that any remembrances be made to the Elk Grove United Methodist Church, 8986 Elk Grove Blvd., Elk Grove, 95624, or the Jessie Baker School, 8820 Southside Ave., Elk Grove, 95624.