I remember being in an online class and the work was not too difficult.  However, when the time came for the exam there was a portion of the test where you had to answer a series of questions correctly to an AI bot. I knew I was screwed. I checked the class roster and lo and behold I see the name “Nate Baker” with his goofy headshot right beside it. I gave Nate a quick call and from that day on he would go out of his way to pick me up from my apartment and we would get these things done with a healthy amount of other friends he had in the same class. 

Just another example of someone being in the gutter and Nate being the one to get them out of it. Without him I was totally done for. What a stud. 

During the initial summer of covid, Leslie and I (really Leslie - you all know that means Leslie when it’s good ideas, right?) asked the kids to learn something new.  Grant negotiated to work a lot more as he was going to need money for college (we LOVE a good work ethic! Grant’s commitment to his co-workers is impressive to this day.  He still doesn’t like to take time off from his job as a PT Tech!). Emily Grace started learning Japanese (why not choose one of the hardest languages on Earth to learn? This gives you a little insight into how EG pushes herself). 

Nate wanted to learn how to repair small engines.  He knew I could help him - he was always interested when I was working on stuff in the garage.  He would also spend hours on YouTube watching videos of people fixing stuff all the time.

His first repair was a riding mower a friend gave us to get out of his garage.  The engine had made a loud bang and quit 4 years before and it wouldn’t start.  It had been sitting in the garage for 4 years but looked nearly new on the outside. It was a more serious job in the scheme of things.  Most small engines that won’t start have a carburetor problem (this is what mixes the fuel and air together on the way into the engine to be burned).  The riding mower had blown a head gasket which meant we had to take the actual engine apart instead of just cleaning or replacing the carburetor.

We took the engine all apart.  Nate was fascinated and helped and was like a sponge soaking up all he saw and touched.  We replaced the head gasket ($17 part by the way) and put it all back together.  New spark plug, Cleaned the carburetor, New battery. Then the moment of truth.  Nate cranked it…and the engine came to life!  It was music to his ears (not gonna lie, mine too!) Check out the picture - it was right before he cranked it.  We hadn’t even put the hood back on it.  Nate rode it around the yard with a huge grin on his face (I think I have a video of that too)!!  When we sold that mower a few days later for $600, he was floored.  He was also hooked and wanted me to find another broken one immediately.  We did that and began his journey as a small engine mechanic.

I tell you all that to get to the real story I wanted to tell.

Nate learned and fixed and learned and fixed and got a reputation pretty quick - mowers, chainsaws, trimmers, generators, etc. One weekend (Spring 2021 as I recall but it may have been in summer 2020), I remember a guy bringing a riding mower to our house in an old truck and trailer.  He had his wife and kid with him.  He looked like he worked as hard as his truck did.  Mower wasn’t a shiny new machine either.  Nate immediately began to work on the mower (sometimes things sat for a little bit but this one didn’t…).  He had to tear a lot of parts off to repair it.  As I recall it needed a new spindles and belt on the deck but maybe a starter motor too (I get them all mixed up - there was a lot of repairs in our garage). Nate was working fast.

Leslie asked him “Nate, how much is this guy paying you to fix his mower?” As she looked at the mess he had in the garage in the thick the repair. Nate looked up and said “Mom, did you see that guy?  He has no way to make money other than with this mower.  If I don’t fix this for him, he can’t feed his family.  I’m not charging him anything.”

I think I almost cried when Leslie shared this with me. I can tell you I am crying now writing about it.

That was Nate.  Willing to bust his butt for people.  People he didn’t even know. That was his heart and God’s light shining in him at the age of 16.

I miss you and love you Nate Baker.

Thank you again to John and Michelle Alouf for giving that first riding mower to Nate.  That sparked his “mechanic” journey

I can remember when Nate acquired some speakers freshman year.  They were a pair of speakers with wooden sides and and a black front. Justin and I got an urgent call that we needed to get over his room to check them out immediately. 

We walked into the room with all set up with his LED lights, and him sitting behind Sam’s DJ board. He had us sit down and began, with the volume maxed out, playing the iconic intro to “Money for Nothing” which had been most of what we were listening to during that period of time. We all started cracking up at how loud these things could get. All of Bate’s West could hear Dire Straights that night. 

Being freshman, we then spent the night at TLC continuing to have a good time. Such funny times to think back on. 

Nate cut our grass while he was in high school. One particular day, I was sitting at the kitchen table and he appeared at my sliding glass door.  He said “Mrs Ayres, you have baby bunnies!  Come look” I followed him out to our backyard, and sure enough, there they were in a little nest. He suggested we make a barrier so the pups wouldn’t get to them. I remember thinking how remarkable it was for a teenage boy to see such beauty in newborn life and to want to protect them. 

I was also fortunate enough to see Nate up at Deep Run in the coveted “can man” role. After the first pep rally, I told Leslie, HE WAS MADE FOR THIS!  What a presence he had with his class and the school!

Mike and I are so blessed to have known Nate. What an impact he made in everyone’s life. Thank you Baker’s for sharing him with all of us ♥️

This is who Nate was. (some of these will be deeper than others - I plan to share many)

We love to share our lake time with friends and family.  I am not sure who liked it more - Nate or Me - but one of the things we loved doing was teaching people how to wakesurf, wakeboard, waterski or kneeboard.  Nate LOVED surfing and always wanted others to feel the joy and freedom of it that he felt.

We were there with the Pierce family one weekend.  Shane Jr was trying to learn to surf and having some challenges at that age/size.  After some attempts, he was ready to be done.  Enter Nate!  "I have an idea dad, I can get him up and surf with him!"  Wha - what?  Nate swaps out to the larger board, puts on a vest and jumps in.  Few seconds later he is positioned with Shane Jr for balance on the board, has the rope and gives the "hit it!" to me.

Up they come out of the water.  Both of them standing on the board surfing!  Everyone in the boat is excited, Shane Jr is smiling and (I think) amazed.

Nate isn't done.

When you are able to drop the rope and actually surf the wave is a unique (and spectacular!) feeling.  It takes some practice, some balance and some feel for the subtle changes in the board/wave interaction.  (It is actually pretty similar to riding a bike - once you do it, it's really easy and you wonder why you ever had trouble learning!)

Anyway, Nate proceeds to find the sweet spot on the wave and drop the rope!  Their faces lit up and everyone in the boat was matching Nate's grin from ear to ear that you see in the photo.

That was Nate - fearless to try something new and inspire others too also (way to go Shane Jr!!!), wanting to share the joy he had for things, teaching others new things.

We miss you Nate!  Thanks for sharing your joy and spirit with those around you!

Shane, Carrie, Alexis, Devyn, Shane Jr - we can't wait to have you back at the lake and Shane Jr will have to get up on his own next time!

There has never been a more perfect example of pictures saying a thousand words. Looking at photo after photo of Nate -you feel and see his extraordinary spirit. He has a light that will always shine.

My son, Barrett just emailed me and said, "Mom, Nate's passing is so hard. I want you to know how much I love you. I don't think I say it enough."

That's Nate's light right there, reminding us to say, I love you more often. What a special light. 

God Bless you, Nate, Leslie, Dan, Grant & Emily Grace

xxJulie

Nate’s 19th birthday is such a great memory of my time here at South Carolina. It’s no secret that Nate was happiest when he was in nature, and that’s where he wanted to be on his birthday. Myself, Nate, Justin Fogarty, Sam Porter, and Mikey Bags all drove to Congaree National Park. The park consists of large areas of swamp lands, with low bridges that allow you to walk over them. We spent so much time walking through this swamp, amazed at the beauty that we had to ourselves. 

All throughout the park there were half rotted out trees that only needed a little more than a nudge to come crashing down. Once Nate and Justin found out about this it kept us occupied for a while. I have videos of all of us nearly being squashed underneath these trees. 

A tree that must’ve been a few hundred years old, at some point in time, fell and created the perfect bridge across a stream. As we stumbled across this we all took time to sit on it and look at the water that flowed beneath us. We all took a photo with the towering, upended roots behind us. 

Nate was wearing his “BMW Performance Driving School” T-Shirt. Damn, he loved that thing. 

I like to think that Nate really enjoyed that birthday, keeping it simple because after all he was a simple man. 

I’m kicking myself for not writing this first. 

I wanted to let you all know why the charity on this is “Just TRYAN It”. 

One of the first stories, Nate ever told me about his fraternity life was about a guy named Ryan Darby.

He told me one day “dad! you gotta meet this kid! He is the funniest person I’ve ever met in my life. he is the greatest guy and I don’t know how he has that sense of humor because…because dad, what he has been through- he is a cancer survivor. He had cancer AS A KID dad! Yet, oh my god dad, you will love his sense of humor and hanging out with him!  You gotta meet him dad!”

When Nate Baker tells me someone is funny? When Nate Baker tells me somebody is a great person? Well I pay real close attention! (I like to think Nate got his humor assessments from me, and his character assessments from Leslie - All of you can judge whether that was wise of him!)

Nate was 💯 percent right!  Ryan Darby is my type of people! I am in awe of Ryan’s attitude, humor, and thirst for life that I see and witness in him.

Nate would be proud to know that resources are being directed toward the charity named after Ryan - it’s to help support pediatric cancer families.  Check them out if you haven’t.

Ryan, Nate loved you! Keep shining!

To the rest of the Fiji boys - Nate’s character judgement is why he picked you to hang around (and you have all been a fine demonstration of it this last week)!!  Keep showing grace and love and helpfulness to each other - and to strangers too!  Nate is so proud of you and so are the rest of the Bakers!