Henry H. Baecker

WEST BATH – Henry H. Baecker of Brighams Cove of West Bath, Maine, died on March 31, 2025.

He was born May 10, 1936 in New Jersey and started his business career at Citibank, New York, and after that with Chase Manhattan. He relocated to Maine in 1978 working for Canal Bank and Maine National Bank. He retired from Maine Bank & Trust Dec. 31, 1999 after eight years working with them before the bank opened in 1991. All told, he worked 41 years as a Commercial Banker. In his retirement years, he worked part time for Norway Savings Bank.

His interests were varied, but his friends, family, and nature were utmost to him.

He leaves a daughter, Kristen Sparro of New York, son-in law, Christopher Sparro; granddaughter Kaylee and grandson Ryan; as well as, his late former wife Susan Baecker and late partner Margot Webber.

There will not be a funeral. Burial will be in Oak Grove Cemetery in Bath, Maine.

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Henry, my father, was an extremely humble man and wrote his own obituary above. He did not like to draw attention to himself, so he wanted it to be short and simple. I would like to share a little bit more here myself, as his loving daughter. We have had a few arguments in my head as I know he would not like me to share this; however, I would like to share how loved he is!! My family referred to him as “Crabby” (the crabby crab from Maine, which always made him laugh. It actually became his “official name” from his grandchildren that we all adopted. Many friends loved the name so much and chose to address him by this as well. His health took a downhill turn in December, and he hoped to transition on April Fools’ Day for a good laugh. I actually think he played one last April Fool’s joke on me by going a day early. We have a long history of playing jokes on one another. As a retired banker, departing this world on the final evening of the First Quarter certainly aligned with his sense of humor and order.

His mother was a native of Bath, Maine and a part of the historic Ledyard family. He grew up in West Orange, New Jersey with his parents Ruth Ledyard Baecker and Hugo Baecker. Hugo was originally from Germany. He visited Maine one summer from New Jersey and happened to meet Ruth at Popham Beach, Maine in the 1930’s. Hugo clearly never moved back to Germany. Henry did not have any siblings. He first visited Maine in the summer of 1949 to visit family. He fell in love with Maine! In September 1963, he scraped together enough money for a down payment. The bank where he worked in NYC gave him a loan, and at the age of 27, he became a proud owner of a small cottage in Brighams Cove in West Bath, Maine. He loved it so much that, in 1978, he moved with his wife, Susan Matteson Baecker (originally from Maplewood, NJ) and his daughter Kristen to Brunswick, Maine from NJ to be closer to his beloved cottage. They lived together in Brunswick for 20 years.

He lived in this cottage with sheer strength and fierce independence until December 2024 when his cancer took a turn for the worse. He went boating by himself until October 2024, which was truly one of his greatest pleasures in life!! He lived his life on his own terms and chose to live his days on the coast of Maine in his home. Simple pleasures like feeding a seagull he named “Sammy” every morning, listening to the raindrops falling on the roof, and reading poetry made his heart happy. He considered his neighbors of Brigham’s Cove to be his extended family. He would not have been able to live independently without them the past few years. He and I are forever grateful to each one of them!

He especially loved his connections to the people in the banking world in southern Maine. He developed so many precious friendships over the years and cherished every single one of them!

He adored his grandchildren! He always said how lucky he was to live long enough to truly know his grandchildren as adults!! He loved hearing the weekly reports about his granddaughters classroom shenanigans as a 3rd grade teacher and loved talking sports with his grandson in college.

He had a long journey with esophageal cancer, congestive heart failure, and many other ailments. We savored every single second together and created many beautiful memories over the past eight years knowing his prognosis, which he exceeded!

He had an immense gratitude and appreciation for all the healthcare workers and volunteers in the hospitals over the years and the hospice home where he lived for two months. One of my favorite things to witness was the way he paid special attention to the caretakers in the hospice home. He had a list of everyone who came in to see him each day and wrote down details about their lives so he could remember the details and make each one feel special.

He left a HUGE loving imprint in my heart and to all who knew him. I am forever grateful we had so much quality time together these past years!! Including all the “crabby” moments we shared along this difficult health journey. We had a way of bringing out the best and the worst in one another. Truthfully, we became the best of friends. “Only child” (Dad) with an “only child” (me) is an indescribable connection!!

As per his wishes, there will be no formal service. He did not want to inconvenience anyone. He will “return to the earth” on his birth date May 10th in his beloved hometown of Bath, Maine, which would have been his 89th birthday. A full circle of his life. His parents are buried there, as well as many of his ancestors, which gave him great comfort! He also joked that he has a great water view from his plot. His humor was prevalent right until the very end.

He shared with us that he believed that the two most important things in life are to have GRATITUDE and to always have HOPE.

Memories and Condolences can be shared at http://www.brackettfh.com

If you wish to make a donation in his honor, he would love to give back to Regional Hospice of Danbury, Conn., so other people may receive the grace, love and support as they transition, just like he did https://regionalhospicect.org/make-a-gift-old/