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Memorial to be held for Judge William R. Baird
SHERRY KARABIN
Legal News Reporter
Published: March 12, 2019
A public memorial is being held on April 12 to remember Judge William R. Baird.
Judge Baird, who served on the common pleas and 9th District Court of Appeals benches, passed away on Feb. 4 at the age of 84.
“My father lived his life in the service of something higher,” said his daughter Sally Baird. “Whether justice, church or community, he was committed to using his intellect, his resources and his energy to ensure that the world around him was a better, fairer place.
“He and my mom really were a team in public service.”
“The support of my mother is what allowed my dad to give so much of himself to the community,” said his daughter Rebecca Baird.
“Both our parents were very involved in supporting our activities and interests. My sister and I had Beacon Journal paper routes for years and dad helped deliver those heavy Sunday newspapers,” said Rebecca. “He loved gardening; past colleagues no doubt remember the fresh vegetables he distributed at the office.”
Summit County Common Pleas Court Judge Tammy O’Brien said Judge Baird was one of her early mentors.
“I was Judge Baird’s law clerk and judicial attorney from 1992 to 1994,” said Judge O’Brien. “He was my first boss out of law school.
“He was a brilliant judge, with a great memory,” she said. “If you were working on something and needed some assistance, Judge Baird could recall cases from years ago where some of the same issues were involved.
“He was always humble and down to earth and one of the most honest people I’ve ever met,” Judge O’Brien said.
Born in Akron on Dec. 29, 1934 to Annabel Ridenour and Samuel Pond Baird, he was an only child.
Judge Baird graduated from Buchtel High School and received his bachelor’s degree in political science from Amherst College in 1956.
After obtaining his juris doctor from Case Western Reserve University School of Law in 1959, he served in the U.S. Army and Army Reserves.
Judge Baird and his wife Pat both attended Buchtel High School, but his daughter Sally said they only began dating after Pat saw him getting on a courthouse elevator and asked a mutual friend to set them up. They were married in 1961.
Judge Baird began his legal career at Buckingham, Doolittle & Burroughs, but left to join the Summit County Prosecutor’s Office. While working in the prosecutor’s office, he also served as a councilman for then Fairlawn Village.
In 1966, he became law director for the city of Akron.
Judge Baird was elected to the Summit County Common Pleas Court in 1976, serving until he was appointed to the 9th District Court of Appeals in 1983. He was re-elected to the appeals court four times before retiring in 2004.
Judge Baird received the St. Thomas More award in 2006.
Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Deborah Cook served on the 9th Ohio District Court of Appeals with Judge Baird from 1991 to 1994.
“It was my first judicial job and he was a wonderful mentor,” said Judge Cook. “Judge Baird always did things the right way,” Judge Cook said. “With his careful, thoughtful approach to analyzing an appeal, I observed how a fine jurist should perform.
“WRB, as he signed notes at the court, excelled at his craft because he was very smart, attentive, open to arguments, timely, practical and human. It is no wonder that both the bench and bar thoroughly admired Judge Baird throughout his years of service.
“I thought the world of William R. Baird, my mentor and friend. He was one of the greats of our court system. Godspeed Bill.”
Medina County Common Pleas Court Judge Joyce Kimbler worked for Judge Baird twice at the beginning of her legal career.
“As a judge he was committed to coming to the correct legal conclusion, but he never lost sight of the humanity in a case,” said Judge Kimbler. “He was very thoughtful and took time to mull things over.
“I really admired him and I drew my judicial philosophy from the things that he taught me.”
Judge Kimbler said Judge Baird also had a “wicked sense of humor,” often wearing a bright orange or lime green shirt under his robe or attempting to prank employees with a rubber snake in his desk.
“He was a very well rounded person,” she said. “We attended the same church and went on mission trips to Haiti together. He would work tirelessly with the church mission during the day and then in the evening cut loose and go dancing at a party.”
Roderick Linton Belfance attorney Todd Mazzola first got to know Judge Baird while serving as a judicial clerk to 9th Ohio District Court of Appeals Judge Daniel Quillin.
“Judge Baird was an extremely smart and capable judge,” said Mazzola. “When on the bench, Judge Baird was well prepared and well versed on the issues to be argued.
“As an attorney practicing before him you had to keep on your toes, but you could be sure that you would receive fair treatment and a thorough and well thought out decision.
“I will remember Judge Baird as a man who lived an exemplary life of public service and strove in his private life to help the less fortunate,” said Mazzola. “He was a one-of-a-kind man who will be greatly missed, but fondly remembered by the legal community and the countless other people whose lives he touched.”
In the late 1990s, Judge Baird and his wife began raising alpacas at their dream home in Copley Township.
Nancy Reeves, a former judicial clerk and now assistant dean for academic success at The University of Akron School of Law, said Judge Baird would use the alpacas to brighten the days of those he thought needed a little cheering up.
“After a court colleague lost re-election, he arrived the next day with at least one alpaca,” said Reeves. “He knew the day would be hard for everyone and knew what a loss this judge leaving the court would be. Judge Baird figured an alpaca would be just the thing to soften the blow.”
Judge Baird was a longtime active member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, serving in leadership roles on the Vestry and Finance committees as well as many other church committees.
His daughter Sally said he loved hands-on work, including local Habitat for Humanity projects. She said he was especially committed to St. Paul’s work in Haiti, helping to build a school and church outside Port-au-Prince.
A longtime volunteer and community service leader with the Copley-Fairlawn Kiwanis Club, Judge Baird was a constant in Kiwanis service projects.
He served as director of the Kiwanis Summer Music Festival for more than 20 years, securing bandstand acts, raising funds to pay for the programs, introducing the acts and picking up chairs when the performances were over.
A private family burial was held on Feb. 9. The public memorial service on April 12 gets underway at 1 p.m. at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church.
Judge Baird leaves behind his wife Pat; daughters Sally M. Baird (Sharon McKew) of Vienna, Virginia and Rebecca L. Baird (Kevin Calandra) of Surfside Beach, South Carolina; grandsons Ryan William and Adam Alonzo Foster-Baird; stepsister Ingrid Douglass and cousins Peggy Seniuk, Ellen Arnholter, Julia Biddle and Laura Peterson.