Barbara Wood Baker, 76
Barbara’s vivacious spirit left us Feb. 5, 2025. She died in a Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, hospice from recently discovered bone cancer. She was 76. Barbara was welcomed into the world in Missoula, Mont., on May 14, 1948, the second of five children born to Walter and Marjorie White.
Her survivors include her husband of 22 years, Jamie Baker; children Amber O’Doherty, Travis (Karmin) Wood, Parrish (Jeff) Maple, Lacy Wood, and Summer (David) Kaurin; brother Everett; sisters Judy, Vicky and Jeanie; and 16 grandchildren and 10 great-grandchildren.
Barbara grew up in Ronan, Mont., where she enjoyed playing with cousins before moving to Kimmer, Wyo., with her family. Another relocation took the Whites to Waitsburg, Wash., where Barbara attended high school and helped rally the Cardinals as a cheerleader. She was married 16 years to Jerry Wood, her high school sweetheart. They had five children and eventually settled in Chewelah, Wash. After their divorce, Barbara moved to Spokane, Wash., where she became a billing specialist for psychiatrists. An affinity for records keeping convinced Barbara to establish what would become her own successful medical billing business, Barbara Wood & Co.
A chance 1995 visit to the South Hill Spokane nightclub Studio K would open a new chapter in Barbara’s life. It began when her infectious smile caught the attention of Jamie Baker, who was playing saxophone in a small combo. “She was out there giving me the eye,” he recalled with a laugh. “So, I set down my sax and went down and danced with her.” Six weeks would pass before her next trip to Studio K. This whirl on the dance floor, however, would turn Barbara and Jamie into a couple. The two soon discovered that they shared a mutual wanderlust and love of adventure. Jamie remembers fondly how Barbara surprised him one day in 1996 with a handful of plane tickets. She had taken advantage of a Southwest Airlines 25th anniversary offer of $25 tickets that were good for any of the company’s nonstop destinations. The two spent a summer hiking and exploring Seattle, Boise, Salt Lake City, San Francisco and New Orleans.
They married in 2002. Jamie describes his late wife as a woman “who had a loving heart, but who wasn’t afraid to speak her mind.” This was never more true than the time Barbara announced her desire for a playhouse-sized ornamental flying saucer. She learned about it thanks to her daughter, Amber, who had spotted the offbeat yard art at a Spokane emporium for collectibles. Weighing both price and dimensions with a pragmatic mind, Jamie suggested that his wife might want to “sleep on it” before making such a monumental purchase. To which Barbara replied in one of those “line-in-the-sand” tones: “I’m 60 years old and I’ll never get another chance to buy a flying saucer!” It wasn’t long before Barbara’s red and white UFO had landed in Wallace, Idaho, on a conspicuous corner outside the Red Light Garage. Barbara and Jamie opened the landmark diner in 2002 and ran it together until its sale in 2023. The solid-metal saucer is still a major draw for curious adults and “kids who just gravitate toward it,” said Jamie. The defunct aged garage was one of the historic properties Jamie and Barbara acquired in the Wallace/Mullan area. But they were unsure about what to do with it until a fire destroyed two houses the Bakers had bought as fixer-uppers. Instead of “sitting around moping” about the fire, Jamie said they decided to focus their creativity on what to do with the garage. He laughed. “All of a sudden, we were married to a restaurant.”With its great food, antiques for sale and quite possibly the Earth’s best huckleberry milkshake, the Red Light Garage would not only thrive but help the Wallace brand as a tourist destination.
Baker acknowledges that life in Wallace would not be the same without Barbara around. But he finds comfort in a story from her childhood.
A 4-year-old Barbara found herself riding in the back seat of her mother, Marjorie’s, car with her brother Everett, who was 6. The two started squabbling until it reached a level of annoyance that caused Marjorie to pull the car over and introduce her children to the concept of tough love.“Get out!” hollered Marjorie. Thoroughly shocked, Barbara and Everett climbed out and began hoofing it along the country back road. Everett, despite being older, started bawling. Though two years younger, Barbara was already demonstrating the “take charge” attitude that would carry her through life. “Quit crying!” she told her big brother. Marjorie, who was following her tykes, soon had them back in the car, where peace reigned for the remainder of the ride home. “That’s what Barbara is telling us now,” said Jamie. “No more crying.”
A memorial reception will be held in Wallace at the Hutton House, 221 Pine St., on Feb. 17 from 1 to 5 p.m.
Baker