Jo Evelyn Patterson Baker, a loving, kind, and gracious lady passed away Sunday, August 25, in Catoosa, Oklahoma at the age of 90. She was born in Texana, Oklahoma, April 28, 1929 to Luther and Violet Dunegan. Jo, her sister Sue Nell, and brother Jean Paul were raised by their mother in the home of their grandparents, Hugh and Hattie Prim, in Checotah. She graduated from Checotah High School at age 16 and had played clarinet in the marching band. Unknown to her mother, Jo also won a jitterbug contest at the USO in 1944, which started her love of dancing.
After attending Draughn's School of Business in Tulsa she moved to Muskogee to work at S&R Clothiers, but her life changed after meeting Jesse Patterson on a blind date. They married in 1946 and their daughter, Sandra, was born in 1947. They moved from Oklahoma to Texas and then to Colorado before returning to Tulsa in 1959 when Jo began a long career as a secretary at Sinclair Oil & Gas (now ARCO). There she made nine life-long friends who have continued their friendship all these years as the "Birthday Girls."
After Jesse died in 1983, Jo continued working at ARCO until retirement. Then along came James Baker, who quickly learned he had to work on his ballroom dancing skills in order to woo Jo. They were married in 1991 at First Christian Church and enjoyed more than 28 years together traveling the U.S. and abroad, taking cruises, and, of course, years of dancing at the Candlewood Club and Petroleum Club with friends they called the "Huggin' Dozen."
Jo will be remembered for her kindness, generosity, humor, and loving spirit. She is survived by her husband, James Baker; daughter, Sandra Parsons of San Diego, California; granddaughter Emily Bass and her husband Eric, and their children, Joseph, Madeleine, and Daniel, of San Diego; her sister, Sue Morgan of Eufaula; and numerous nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents and brother. Other family members are Jim's daughter, Andrea Wilkerson and husband Steve of Catoosa; and Jim's grandson, Chance Wilkerson, of Monrovia, California.
Friends and family are invited to a celebration of life for Jo at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday, August 29, Moore Funeral Home's Southlawn Chapel, 9350 E. 51st, Tulsa, 74145. Interment will be next door in Memorial Park Cemetery. Southlawn Chapel will also host visitation on Wednesday, August 28, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
There may be dancing. Moore's Southlawn 918-663-2233 share memories at www.moorefuneral.com