Kathy Baker

Kathleen Ann (Kathy) Elling Small Ford Baker passed away unexpectedly at her home in La Mesa in January 2025 at the age of 72. She was born January 20, 1952, in Buffalo NY to Richard and Mary (Peggy) Elling. She attended St. Amelia Catholic School in North Tonawanda, where she skipped kindergarten and went right into first grade. The family moved to San Diego in 1959 when her father took a job as an aerospace engineer at General Dynamics. Her childhood was spent in the Mission Village neighborhood and she attended Cubberley Elementary, Taft Junior High, and 10th grade at Kearny High. In her junior year, she transferred to the Academy of Our Lady of Peace all-girls high school and graduated in 1969. Her international travel spirit of adventure was sparked at age 16 when she was offered a last-minute open spot on a Lion’s Club-sponsored 6-week student exchange trip to Japan, and she did not hesitate to say yes. She received a degree in Anthropology from SDSU and was a member of the Beta Rho chapter of Kappa Delta sorority.

Kathy married her first husband, Ben Small, in 1972. They moved to Baton Rouge, LA for graduate school. Their marriage ended in divorce. Kathy got a Master’s Degree in Library Science from LSU and was a lifelong Tiger fan. Kathy loved her time living in New Orleans. She moved to Fayetteville, AR for her first library job at the Dept of Agriculture and then worked for the Univ of Arkansas. There she met and married Richard Ford, a professor at the University. She was a lifelong Razorback fan. They lived for a stint in Kentucky and Kathy developed a keen interest in the Amish heritage and crafts. They moved back to Little Rock and Kathy worked as a librarian for the local news station KATV and the Army Corps of Engineers. Her second marriage ended in divorce.

The highlight of her career was working as the assistant to the Chief of Staff for Bill Clinton when he was Governor of Arkansas from 1983-1989. She was a big fan of Clinton’s political leadership and became friendly with the Clinton family. In 1992, she took a 9-month leave of absence from her job in San Diego to devote herself full-time as a volunteer with Clinton’s presidential campaign headquarters in Little Rock. She was assigned to the ‘war room’ where her library research skills were put to good use gathering data to use in counter-attacks on his opponent in the race, George H.W. Bush. She happily gifted her parents with a trip to the White House and a personal meeting with President Clinton.

Kathy moved back to San Diego in 1989 and buried a statue of St. Joseph in her front yard as a good luck charm to help sell her house in Little Rock. She promptly put St. Joseph on the dashboard of her Honda for her road trip back to CA. As she crossed the CA state line, she bought a lottery ticket and won $5,000. She took a job bartending for a few months at The Falcon’s Lure in La Mesa while making plans to spend her winnings on a European adventure. Fate stepped in and she met an auto mechanic, Paul Baker. After knowing each other for about a month he joined her for the Europe adventure. They bought a used car in Spain and toured for 3 months. When they returned to San Diego, she settled into life with Paul and a job with the San Diego Public Library system. She and Paul were soulmates and they married in 2002 on the back of his Harley motorcycle in Las Vegas at the drive-through Little White Wedding Chapel. She and Paul had many motorcycle, cruise ship, and international travel adventures until his untimely death in 2006. She retired as branch manager of the Oak Park Branch Library when she was 54. 

Kathy had a gift for storytelling. She was a published author in Woman’s Day magazine with an article about the challenges in her first marriage and had a letter published in Time Magazine about her miracles with St. Joseph.

A highlight of her retired life was discovering the live music scene in San Diego. She was especially fond of the Downtown Cafe in El Cajon on Saturday nights and Sunday afternoons. She became a fan of casino slot machines, car shows, and farmer’s markets which got her out and about in the neighborhoods of her beloved San Diego. Her exercise routine was walking the Parkway Plaza Mall while looking for loose change, proudly reporting $250 as her top annual earning one year. 

She lived a full, adventurous, sometimes rebellious life, always marching to the beat of her own drummer. She will be remembered as a smart, creative, and generous person with a mix of sass, sarcasm, and a salty sense of humor. In the last few years, she thanked God every day for the good fortune and blessings in her life. She will be missed by many friends, former classmates, and family she stayed connected with on Facebook and the live music scene in San Diego. She is preceded in death by her parents, husband Paul, and brother Jim. She is survived by her siblings Carol Elling, Tom Elling (Michele), Susan Elling (Maurene), 12 nieces and nephews, and 17 grandnieces and grandnephews. 

No service is planned. Cremation was handled by Smart Cremation and her ashes will be scattered at sea per her request. Memorial contributions can be made to your favorite live musician.