Remembering Marcia Worth Baker

Marcia Worth Baker, former Patch editor for South Orange and an active , vibrant and beloved member of the local community passed away suddenly last night. I knew her from her activities at Morrow Church and as a neighbor of my significant other. She was genuinely warm, incredibly intelligent and a gentle and kind person. A light has gone out. Our hearts are broken.

http://villagegreennj.com/community/marcia-worth-baker-passes-suddenly/

She wrote this on her facebook page on September 11.

Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there – fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge – they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaky feeling you'll find that love actually is all around.

What? Ohmigod! This is shocking. My prayers go to her family! So very sad. She was a fixture in this community and her presence will be sorely missed.

Aww, I love that quote from Love Actually. That's a perfect thing to share on 9/11. RIP, Ms. Baker!

as I wrote elsewhere, she was an unquestionably good person. I believe anyone who had the good fortune to have crossed paths with her would say the same.

This is heartbreaking news. My sincere condolences to her family and friends.

Marcia was the one who was always so good with words. I am speechless, devastated, at a loss. May her memory always be for a blessing.

This is so shocking and sad.

This is heartbreaking.

My heart breaks too. She was a dear lady who really cared.

So sorry to hear this. I didn't know her well, but from what I know of her from online and through shared activities of our children, this is a deep loss for her family and community. My condolences to her family and colleagues, and may her memory be a blessing.

Was she MarciaW here? I never met her in real life, but you could tell by reading her posts that she was a kind and thoughtful person, and an exceptional educator. This is so sad...my condolences to her family, friends, and students past and present...

Super smart but also very humble. She will be missed by all. Thoughts to her family.

afa said:
Was she MarciaW here? I never met her in real life, but you could tell by reading her posts that she was a kind and thoughtful person, and an exceptional educator. This is so sad...my condolences to her family, friends, and students past and present...

Yes, she was MarciaW here. I just confirmed that she identified herself in an old post, so can confirm that here. As you say, a kind and thoughtful voice lost.

oh no! rest in peace!

So saddened by this news. What a loss for our community. I am heartbroken for her loved ones, especially her children. Sending prayers out tonight.

I am so sad and really heartbroken. She was a friend and a writing soulmate who pushed me to send out my work. Her articles in the NY Times were beautiful, truly lyrical and poetic. I will miss her forever.

I got to know her a bit during my time on the BOT and am very sorry to hear this news. She was an incredibly kind and thoughtful woman who was very committed to solid professional local journalism. Very sad. My condolences to her friends and family.

Ms. Worth was a friend. I taught her daughter and her son is in the robotics program at Columbia. She always had time for a real discussion about anything -- education, teaching, her kids, robotics, life. A really kind and strong person. She will be missed!

Strength, kindness and humor. The world has lost a bright light

My heartfelt condolences to her family and friends. RIP.

We used to laugh and laugh together! Especially about our challenges and problems. I can't accept this.

I enjoyed reading her comments on MOL. Just recently she spoke with enthusiasm about getting her classroom ready for her students. This is very sad.

I did not know her, but so sad.

FYI: The memorial service for Marcia Worth-Baker will be held at Morrow Memorial Church in Maplewood on Sunday, Sept. 20 at 2:30 p.m.

How shocking! Her life was too short. I met her briefly, and she impressed me quite a bit.

I am so sorry to hear this. She was a special person - such a loss for our community

Shocking! Saw it in the NYT today. Horrible. Condolences to the family.

I was saddened to learn of Marcia's untimely passing. She gave our community so much through her passion, commitment, and in-depth reporting for local media.

During my tenure as Village President, I got to know Marcia through her coverage of the Village and always was impressed by her commitment to hear all sides and strive to get it right for her readers.

In particular, I will remember the passion and diligence with which she lobbied Congressman Pascrell's staff, in 2010, to research the history of a forgotten WWI South Orange veteran -- with resident Donald Thomas' and her work culminating in the Village engraving his name on our WWI memorial flagpole.

Here's a description of her work on this special project, http://patch.com/new-jersey/southorange/george-mccoy-is-missing-no-more. (Alternatively, Google "George McCoy Is Missing No More")

Marcia Worth Baker will be missed by so many. My heartfelt condolences to her family, friends, and colleagues.

What a wonderful story. I wish I could tell her how much I enjoyed it...and her writing...

DNewman said:
I was saddened to learn of Marcia's untimely passing. She gave our community so much through her passion, commitment, and in-depth reporting for local media.
During my tenure as Village President, I got to know Marcia through her coverage of the Village and always was impressed by her commitment to hear all sides and strive to get it right for her readers.
In particular, I will remember the passion and diligence with which she lobbied Congressman Pascrell's staff, in 2010, to research the history of a forgotten WWI South Orange veteran -- with resident Donald Thomas' and her work culminating in the Village engraving his name on our WWI memorial flagpole.
Here's a description of her work on this special project, http://patch.com/new-jersey/southorange/george-mccoy-is-missing-no-more. (Alternatively, Google "George McCoy Is Missing No More")
Marcia Worth Baker will be missed by so many. My heartfelt condolences to her family, friends, and colleagues.