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 Mike Myer's Tributes to David BakerFrom Mike Myers. SAM President 2004 - 2008David Baker was a modeler with a great deal of energy and enthusiasm. Although he was an Englishman, he'd lived in New Jersey for a time in the late 50's or early 60's and then returned to England. He got the OT or "vintage" modeling bug sometime in the mid 1970's and was one of the prime organizers, movers and shakers etc in setting up SAM 35--the first English SAM Chapter. He wrote the club newsletter. He and a couple of his friends bought modeling supplies in bulk and sold them to other OT modelers who didn't have a source for such things. Somewhere along the line there was a schism between David and some of the other then leaders of SAM 35 -- so David left SAM 35 and formed a new chapter SAM 1066. Again, he wrote the club newsletter, the Clarion and again was a tireless promoter of all things SAM. He actively promoted a series of Anglo American 50th Anniversary Wakefield Contests -- those ran from about 1983 to 1989 or so; in alternate years English modelers came to Southern California to fly Vintage Wakefield at Taft -- and then the next year American modelers went to England to fly. Sal Taibi, Jim Adams, Chet Lanzo, Tom McCoy and many others from Southern California and the East Coast participated in one or more of those Anglo American contests. David was also a frequent attendee at SAM Champs in the US. But David's biggest contribution to old time modeling in England may been his securing the right to use the Middle Wallop Airfield for free flight flying on several weekends each year. Those of us who have been to Middle Wallop for the SAM European Free Flight Champs that have been held there since 1990 know that it can be a modeler's paradise. David was one of the first members of the SAM Hall of Fame--an honor he richly deserved. There's much more that could be said about what David did for SAM and for OT modeling, but it's probably best to just say that he was a very dear friend to many of us who will miss him very much. Mike Myers =====================================More Reflections from Mike Myers - May 09Ahh! David Baker -- a truly good one. I first met David in the early '80's. I was travelling to London on business and I had a free day. David knew nothing of me other than that I was a member of the Southern California Ignition Flyers and was interested in old time models. He came to my hotel, and picked me up for a day long tour of the Shuttleworth Collection at Old Warden, a trip by the Cardington airsheds--and he may even have managed to get me a look in at the RAF museum at Hendon! 'Struth he was tough to keep up with! We discovered we had a shared interest in Bowden's Porlock Puffin. That was the start of a very rewarding twenty five year trans-Atlantic friendship for me. Dave made great friends easily and would give the shirt off his back, or the roof over his head to anyone with the slightest interest in old time models If you wish to send a personal tribute, you can Email it to me and I will upload it to these pages.Click here for David Bakers Squadron Awaiting Dispersalor here to go backHe was one of the greatest promoters of old time or vintage modeling that the world has ever seen. He was a catalyst for the Anglo American vintage Wakefield 50th anniversary reenactments in the mid and late 1980's. He simply made things happen. Friendships blossomed, Middle Wallop became available, large SAM clubs, both SAM 35 and SAM 1066 grew, and lasting, happy memories were formed in the minds of hundreds, if not thousands, of people. I know of a young man who grew out of his youthful shyness and blossomed as a result of contests and travels that David organized; I know of a reclusive old man who had a very happy five last years of life after a chance encounter at a vintage model display at a Model Engineers show in London. David made life better for both of them, just as he did for many, many others. Energy, enthusiasm, and a passion for a particular subject are a hard combination to beat. The phenomenon known as David Baker flew through a lot of lives--and left the world a better place. I will miss both David and Hilda Baker. They were truly great people. I'm proud to say that I was a friend of David Baker's Mike Myers |
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