Roland Baker, age 90 of River Falls, Wisconsin, died peacefully January 11, 2024 at the American Heritage Care Center in Hammond. He was one of seven children born to Ruth and Oscar (Poly) Baker. He worked on the family dairy farm in Centuria, Wisconsin until joining the army in 1952. He was stationed in France, and served for two years before returning home to study journalism and French at the University of Wisconsin, River Falls.
Roland met future wife Kathleen Peskar through mutual friends, and they married in September of 1963. Shortly thereafter, they moved to Alma Center, Wisconsin, where Roland taught high school French. Land management was Roland’s true passion, however, and the couple returned to River Falls, where they made their home and raised two daughters.
Roland maintained a large forest in Centuria, Wisconsin, and he operated a sawmill on the property, selling rough sawn lumber to local builders and craftsmen. In addition to creating a beautiful and productive woodlot, he was also an avid woodworker, naturalist, and amateur apple breeder.
While Roland loved nature, he also embraced college town life, and was a regular at the River Falls coffee shops, Music in the Park, and UWRF writing groups. Roland and Kathleen proudly hosted parade viewing parties on their front porch for River Falls Days, and he maintained a prolific garden on their large lot.
After Roland lost his wife to cancer in 2013, and following an Alzheimer’s diagnosis, he shared his home with a constellation of student and community caregivers. In this capacity he built a second family of sorts, and launched many new beginnings.
Roland spent his final year at Hammond Health Services residential care center, where he received attentive and compassionate care.
Ever the wise and gentle soul, Roland will be remembered for his dry humor, unflappable demeanor, and depression-era resourcefulness.
Roland is preceded in death by his parents, wife Kathleen, and sisters Natalie and Lorna. He is survived by daughters Barbara (George) Aguilera, Bonnie (Kent) Fox, grandchildren Jason (Michelle) and Jamie Wittwer, Nick (Laura) Shillingford, Adam Fox, and great-grandchildren Hayden and Delanie Wittwer.
A memorial will be held on Sunday May 19 at 1:00 pm at the Baker Orchard in Centuria, Wisconsin. In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred to Alzheimer’s research, or the charity of your choice.
Cremation and Memorial services are entrusted to the O’Connell Family Funeral Home of River Falls, https://oconnellfuneralhomes.com/
