All members of the University of Oregon community are welcome at a memorial for David Baker at 4 p.m. on Monday, May 13, in Knight Library, Room 101. Baker, who served as an instructional technology consultant at the UO Libraries, died April 29 at age 35.

He began working at the UO Libraries as a student assistant in 2002. He joined the library staff in 2004, initially working in Access Services and then joining the library’s Center for Media and Educational Technologies in 2007.

“We are all deeply saddened to lose Dave,” said Deborah Carver, dean of libraries. “He had a wide circle of friends and colleagues on our campus and in the community who admired him for all his qualities. He was imaginative, smart and good-natured. He added an important dimension to the library and the university, and we are grateful to him for giving us that.”

Baker won the library’s coveted High Jump Award for exceptional contributions, achievements and endeavors within the library and throughout the campus community in 2010. The award nomination pointed to his expertise and enthusiasm in working with faculty members and librarians across campus to support access and instruction. It also noted that he was a popular and caring mentor and supervisor to his student assistants in the library, organizing “Waffles at My Desk” events in which he made and served waffles to student workers on Friday mornings.

In addition to his library work, he was active in video gaming on both the academic and recreational sides. He helped establish the library’s heavily used video game collection housed in the Science Library; he also co-founded and was the advisor for Think.Play, a group of UO faculty, staff, students and community members who share dialogue and critical engagement with video games through play.

Baker merged his gaming activities with his love of music in April 2012, co-organizing and co-leading a collaborative performance of "Imaginary John Cage No. 1 (for 12 video games)," an original composition created in honor of the John Cage Centennial. The piece premiered on the UO campus and was subsequently performed at the University of Washington.

His wide-ranging interests also included film studies. He recently assisted in organizing an exhibit currently on display in Knight Library entitled "Kin-O: A History of Movie Culture on Campus," and last year played a central role in organizing a rare screening of "Ed’s Coed," a silent, full-length motion picture about the UO made by students in 1929.

His family has established the David L. Baker Memorial Fund at Oregon Community Credit Union; donations can be made at any OCCU branch.

- from UO Libraries