Greg Baker and I first met in my capacity as a social worker.  Because of Greg’s kind personality, our relationship quickly developed into a friendship.  Greg was born with a major medical issue which became untreatable.  We knew that his lifetime was limited.   No longer able to work, Greg was spending his time in New York and California.   Prior to departing for a month in California, Greg called me and asked me to meet him at his apartment, indicating that it was urgent to see me.

I met Greg at his apartment thinking that I would be counseling him to be hopeful despite his dire diagnosis. Upon arriving at his apartment, Greg opened the door and immediately handed me a bucket of Hershey’s chocolates! He said he had bought them for me to give to the orphans I worked with in Africa. He knew I was traveling for my mission trip that week, and he told me that he knew that the children there did not have these treats.  I was taken aback by Greg’s selfless action. I expected him to discuss his illness, but instead, he was thinking about the orphans in Africa. Greg, always caring about others, put the plight of vulnerable children in Africa above his own serious illness.

Greg did not know the children. He had only seen pictures of the them on my organization’s website, Generis International. Assuring him that his condition would improve. I promised him that when I returned, although I don’t smoke, I would smoke a cigar with him. Sadly, when I returned from my mission trip, my manager informed me that Greg had passed away.

To honor his memory, together with Greg’s family and friends, we built the Greg Baker School in a remote village in Zambia.  There had been no school in this village.  The children gathered for classes under a tree—weather permitting! 

The Greg Baker School (pre-school to grade 7), dedicated in 2016, continues to provide education to poor, vulnerable children in Zambia. The school has graduated many students, many of whom have gone on to higher educational opportunities.  Enrollment in 2016 was 150 students, and today numbers around 650. Greg’s love for children continues to impact many lives.