BAKER, Joseph Michael (Fr.)

Father Joseph Michael Baker October 5, 1948 + January 14, 2007 Father Baker, Pastor of Holy Family Catholic Church, died Sunday afternoon after a brief illness. Father was ordained on January 4, 1986 as a Roman Catholic Priest for the Diocese of Tucson and served at St. Luke's Parish in Douglas, St. Francis of Assisi Church in Yuma, Sacred Heart and St. Mary's Churches in Clifton. He also served as Chaplain for the St. Vincent de Paul Society, Knights of Columbus and Holy Hope Cemetery. Father Baker founded and was President of de Porres Caridad, Inc. a non-profit organization responsible for providing food and other necessities for the needy, serving over 100,000 meals each year for the poor and homeless. He received many awards during his ministry, including the Citizen of the Year Award twice from the National Association of Social Workers and his organization de Porres of Caridad was recognized with the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona for impact by a small business. Father Baker is survived by his siblings: John (Dayle) Baker, Mary (Christopher) Bozell, Timothy Baker, Kathleen Baker and Elizabeth (Anthony) Supinski. A visitation and Prayers of the Office of the Dead For Religious will be offered at Holy Family Catholic Church on Tuesday. Visitation will begin at 3:00 p.m. with the Office of The Dead at 7:00 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at St. Augustine's Cathedral on Wednesday afternoon at 1:00 p.m.; Interment will follow at Holy Hope Cemetery. Arrangements by VALLEY FUNERAL HOME - 3276341 Published in the Tucson on 1/16/2007.