2021 began on a somber note for the St. Louis Ski Club, as we learned of the death of long-time member Wayne Baker on January 6th. There were few club members who did not know Wayne personally and fewer still who did not know him at least by reputation: the club parties at his airplane hangar in Illinois, his ever-present camera and his propensity to take pictures while skiing backwards, the extensive photo albums he kept of each of his ski trips, and his all-around ability to make sure that no gathering of the St. Louis Ski Club was ever boring.
As we noted in a Sitzmarker profile in 2019, Wayne had one of the longest histories with the club, going back to 1974. He went on at least one ski trip a year, right up until the Lake Tahoe trip in 2019. Wayne first served as a trip captain on a trip to Telluride in 1987 and would captain several more trips over the years. He stated that his philosophy as a trip captain was to have a good time himself and to make sure everyone else had a good time as well. That also seemed to capture much of Wayne’s philosophy about life. His presence will be greatly missed among all his fellow skiers, but we know that his spirit will live on in our club gatherings for years to come.
Click here for Wayne’s obituary
