Dr. James Leroy Baird Jr., 77, of Nantucket and Mashpee, Mass., and formerly of Old Mystic, died suddenly on Thursday, July 12, 2012, at Hartford Hospital, after suffering a stroke.
He was director emeritus of the Avery Point Campus of the University of Connecticut, having retired from his UConn post in 1996. Through his 21-year tenure, Dr. Baird oversaw the evolution of the oceanfront campus, from its modest beginnings with a small undergraduate student body to a thriving campus community. The growth of the now internationally-known Department of Marine Sciences, the advent of the popular bachelor of general studies program for adult learners, and the development of the Alexey von Schlippe Gallery of Art all happened under his watch. Dr. Baird was also particularly proud of the "Pointers" baseball team and the major league successes of some of its players.
Dr. Baird lead a life devoted to public service. He lead or served on boards for the Boy Scouts of America, Easter Seals Rehabilitation Center, Mystic Aquarium, Lyman Allan Art Museum, UConn Alumni Association, Groton Public Health Nurses, and Junior Achievement. Among other duties for his church, he served as senior warden at St. Mark's in Mystic.
In retirement, Dr. Baird found his loves of history, teaching, and gift of gab combined well for museum work. He served as a docent with the Morse Museum of American Art, the Nantucket Historical Society, and the Coast Guard Heritage Museum. He was also a member of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary on Cape Cod, Mass.
Dr. Baird was born on Aug. 5, 1934, in Bridgeport, and graduated from the city's Bassick High School in 1952. A biologist by training, he earned his bachelor's degree from Tufts University in 1956, his master of science from the University of Minnesota in 1958, and his doctorate from the University of Connecticut in 1964. His area of expertise was the physiology of insect flight. Baird taught at Lafayette College before moving on to the Rochester Institute of Technology, where he headed the biology department and served as vice president for student affairs. He was named director at Avery Point in 1975. His children joked that their father started school as a child and never left, for his long career in academia.
Dr. Baird was married three times, but predeceased twice; he often wondered on the remarkable course his life had taken. He married Ellen Elliott Baird in 1956, with whom he had three children. After Ellen's death from cancer in 1991, Dr. Baird was fortunate to find love again with Margaret Sasseville Pollard Baird. Sadly, their marriage was also cut short when Pollard died in 2003. Dr. Baird had been happily married to Sharon Lapseritis Baird since 2005.
In addition to his wife, Dr. Baird is survived by two daughters, Elizabeth Baird Sherr of Ashland, Mass., and Dr. Margaret T. Baird of Woodbridge, Va.; a son, James L. Baird III of Wakefield, Mass.; a brother, Ronald D. Baird of Fort Myers, Fla.; a sister, Ann Baird Sieracki of Hockessin, Del.; and numerous stepchildren, grandchildren, and in-laws.
A funeral Eucharist will be celebrated at 11 a.m. Saturday at St. Mark's Episcopal Church. Arrangements are under the direction of Dinoto Funeral Home, 17 Pearl St., Mystic. The family will receive friends from 5 to 7 p.m. on Friday at the Dinoto Funeral Home.
Gifts in memory of Dr. Baird may be made to St. Mark's Episcopal Church, Mystic; St. Barnabas Episcopal Church, Falmouth, Mass., or to the Coast Guard Heritage Museum, Barnstable, Mass
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