Katie Baker, Mary Grace’s mother, announced the launch of the Mary Grace Baker Memorial Fund Saturday morning.
BEAUMONT, Texas — A memorial fund has been established to honor the legacy of 8-year-old Mary Grace Baker, a St. Anne Catholic School student whose life was tragically cut short by the catastrophic flooding in the Texas Hill Country.
Katie Baker, Mary Grace’s mother, announced the launch of the Mary Grace Baker Memorial Fund Saturday morning. The fund, created through the Foundation for Southeast Texas, aims to preserve Mary Grace’s memory.
“The love and support from Southeast Texas and around the world has carried us through our darkest days,” Katie Baker wrote. “And even in the depths of our grief—as families are still burying loved ones and we remain desperate to find Cile Steward—we’ve found light in the incredible community that has formed around us. With the launch of the Mary Grace Baker Memorial Fund, our hope is to honor our darling daughter’s legacy forever. Thank you for helping us keep her joy and memory alive through the things she loved most.”
Mary Grace, a student at St. Anne Catholic School in Beaumont, was attending Camp Mystic in Hunt, Texas, when sudden flooding tore through Kerr County, killing more than 100 people, including children. The camp was hosting more than 750 campers at the time.
Born April 10, 2017, to Katie O’Neill Baker and Clarke Baker in Beaumont, Mary Grace was known for her contagious laugh, her angelic blonde curls, and her boundless love for life, family, and friends. Her parents say she embodied joy, often rushing into hugs that nearly knocked people over and spreading laughter in carpool lines with her silly jokes and spontaneous singalongs.
Mary Grace was deeply loved by her school community. She was described her as “a bright light in our close-knit school family,” remembered for her kindness, faith, and infectious spirit. She had recently received the prestigious St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Award, given to students who demonstrate exemplary Catholic values, academic excellence, and service to others.
Mary Grace’s days were filled with activity and adventure. She loved dance, baseball, piano, skiing, hula dancing, and traveling. She had a special bond with her younger brother, Jeb, and was particularly close to her Nana, with whom she shared countless treasured moments.
She made her debut as an angel in the 2023 Nutcracker with the Beaumont Civic Ballet and had dreamed of becoming Clara one day. Her love for the arts, sports, and school was only matched by her love for people. “She selected her activities to maximize the number of people she could see,” her memorial find stated.
Her joyful nature extended to acts of kindness, often crafting handmade trinkets with sequins, tiny beads, and Legos for anyone who seemed willing. She made a point to include others and uplift them, whether by offering a hug to a stranger or sharing her imaginative creations with friends.
“To say she lived big would be an understatement,” the memorial fund said.
Mary Grace was baptized at four months old, received her First Reconciliation, and made her First Holy Communion just two weeks after her eighth birthday. Her faith was central to her life, lovingly nurtured by her parents, grandparents, and teachers at SAS and her church community.
She is survived by her parents, Katie and Clarke Baker; her brother, John Edward “Jeb” Baker; her grandparents, Darlene and Pat O’Neill and Alisha and Mike Baker of Beaumont; great-grandmother, Nancy Baker of Pineville, Louisiana; a large extended family of aunts, uncles, cousins, and godparents; and a community of classmates, teachers, and friends who adored her. She was preceded in death by her grandmother, Beverly Collins Baker.
“Every dollar given [to the fund] spreads the love and joy that she so generously shared in her lifetime,” the memorial fund stated.
To donate to the Mary Grace Baker Memorial Fund, visit: https://givebutter.com/MaryGraceBakerMemorialFund.