Robert N. Baker IV, 33

Vice president
R.W. Baker & Co. Funeral Home and Crematory

It wasn't too long ago that Robert, better known as "Blake," Baker wanted nothing to do with Suffolk or the family business. When he was 15, his 18-year-old sister Lynell died from a head injury sustained in a horseback riding accident. He remembers little about her funeral except his anger.

After graduating in environmental sciences from Ferrum, Baker went to work in a Virginia Beach consulting firm, doing lead and asbestos abatements for military housing overseas.

But he found himself thinking about home and calling family often. So in 2000, he came back, at last ready to become the fifth Baker generation to run the Suffolk funeral home that had opened in 1885. Baker had always been vice president on the books as he was the only son of his father, Robert III, who, at 62, is still president. Blake's aunt has been secretary/treasurer for decades and his wife now works there too.

As hands-on vice president, baker brought with him contemporary touches that have tugged the business into the 21st century. He created a web site and a children's room at the funeral home that's stocked with toys and books. He introduced the "celebration of life" CD. in which still photos of the decreased are blended with music to make a keepsake for the family. Perhaps his most beloved innovation has been linking his funeral home to the worldwide Celebration of Light, a in about three dozen countries for families who have lost a child of any age. Everyone who came last year to the funeral homes' first such service, promised they'd be back, Baker said.

"People always think of this business as depressing and it can be," he said. "But when you help someone at the worst time of their life, the loss of a child, the reward can be tremendous."

While his everyday work is a service to the community, Baker does additional service as a volunteer. He helped found the Greater Suffolk Council for business owners, is logistics captain for Suffolk's Relay for Life and is active in the West End Neighborhood Council.

He and his wife have a 6-month-old son and a 3-year-old daughter. She is named for his later sister, who continues to be the drive behind his work, he said.