Ann Baker Obituary

Ann McConaughy Baker N. CHARLESTON - Ann McConaughy Baker, 84, of North Charleston, passed away on Wednesday, December 22, 2021. Wife of Walter Mitchell Baker, Sr., Ann was born in Decatur, Mississippi, on October 6, 1937 to the late Dr. John McConaughy and Anna Person McConaughy. Ann's parents were college professors, allowing her to live in various places growing up. When her mother and father took positions at the University of South Carolina, Ann moved to Columbia, South Carolina, and considered it her hometown. Her early experiences and her parents' chosen careers inspired Ann's life-long love of learning and influenced her decision to become a teacher. Ann began her career as a social worker for Richland and Williamsburg counties and worked tirelessly to obtain services for her clients. She often took on extra caseloads and traveled rural roads to meet with people personally. Ann returned to social work in her later years, serving as guardian ad litem in Chesterfield County. A military wife, Ann began her first teaching job in 1967 in Johnsonville, South Carolina, while her husband was serving a tour in Vietnam, and just two weeks after giving birth to her third child. Ann was a gifted teacher who earned her Master's degree from the University of South Carolina and completed thirty additional hours in guidance and curriculum development. She taught kindergarten, second, and fifth grade and served as a school counselor and curriculum coordinator before retiring in 1994. Much of her career was spent serving students in McBee, South Carolina. Ann was a devoted mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother who enjoyed camping, gardening, and reading (especially the humor of Erma Bombeck). Ann is survived by her husband of 65 years, Mitchell; two daughters, Nancy Baker Krause of North Charleston; Mary Baker Stevens (Paul) of North Charleston; son, Mitch Baker (Meredith) of Orangeburg; grandchildren, Mac Baker (Natalie), Mallie Baker Shaw (Parker), Baker Stevens, Eric Stevens (Amanda), Gage Stevens, Isabella Stevens, Scottie Krause; and great-granddaughter, Mila Kathleen Shaw. Visit our guestbook at legacy.com/obituaries/charleston