Rio Vista

Gary Lee Baker recently passed away from heart failure on August 31, 2024. He was 85-years young. He lived in dual households in Rio Vista, CA and Goldfield, NV.

Gary was born on January 12, 1939, to Charley and Mabel Baker in Bell, CA. He was the youngest of 3, with his brother and sister significantly older than him. Gary grew up playing with his nephew and niece, who were close to his age. Gary, and his best friend Frank Heyer, graduated from Southgate High School in 1957.

Gary was given an Army draft notice in 1961, so he joined the Navy instead. Gary spent 2years inactive duty and continued in the Navy Reserves for the next 25 years, retiring as a Chief Petty Officer. His specialty had been repairing and teaching about radar and sonar.

Gary met his wife, Cathy Neuhring, at a Lutheran social club while Gary was the group’s leader, planning dances. They married in 1963 and had 2 daughters.

Gary was a mostly self-taught analog electronics engineer. Early in his career he worked in Southern California, later moving to Santa Cruz County (Watsonville) where he commuted to Apple Computer. Gary retired at the age of 53, fondly telling everyone that he had too many hobbies for working full-time.

Gary was an amateur radio operator (N6ARV), he enjoyed restoring antique radios, he travelled frequently across the USA, Alaska, and Canada, and he was a was very fond of pipe organ, old-time jazz, and ragtime music. His life-long passion were trollies and electric trains.

Gary was a long-time member of the Western Railway Museum in Suisun, CA; the Southern California Railway Museum in Perris, CA; the Ft Smith Trolley Museum in Fort Smith, AR; and the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum in Washington, PA. At the time of his death, Gary was planning an RV trip east, stopping at several museums, on his way to visit family in Morgantown, WV. Gary is survived by his former wife, Cathy; his daughters Colleen Gross and Suzanne Kiani (& Jahan); and his 5 grandchildren: Jacob, Nathaniel, Isabella, Auriana, and Emilia.

A memorial service will be held at the Western Rail Museum in Suisun, CA on Wednesday, October 2nd from 3:00-5:00. Please attend and come with a memory of Gary to share.