Mrs. Dorothy Anita Gamble Baker

Dorothy Anita Gamble Baker (Anita), loving wife, mother, grandmother, nurse and businesswoman, died peacefully January 25 at her home in Pawleys Island with her husband of 51 years by her side, after a five-month battle with pancreatic cancer. She was born March 1, 1948 at Tuomey Hospital in Sumter, first child of William Goodman Gamble and Dorothy Dennis Gamble. Both of her parents and her brother, William Beasley Gamble (Buddy), preceded her in death. She is survived by her husband of 51 years, Laurin M. Baker (Larry); two children, Jennifer Baker Reid of Arlington, VA and William Ryan Baker (Joy) of Bakersville, NC; and three beloved grandchildren, John Ryan Reid of Arlington and Eva and Robin Baker of Bakersville. She was proud to be Gamble Cousin #5 out of 24. Anita was a pioneer in her chosen profession of nursing. A graduate of the inaugural class of four-year nurses at the Medical University of South Carolina School of Nursing in 1970, her first job was as a Registered Nurse in the U.S. Army Hospital in Nuremberg, Germany, where her husband Larry was stationed with the U.S. Army. Throughout the rest of her career she often found herself at the forefront of the profession, starting new programs or services and applying her training and experience in new and innovative ways. She and Larry lived throughout the United States during their years together, beginning in South Carolina and on to New York; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Lake Bluff, Illinois; and Alexandria and Arlington, Virginia before returning to their beloved home state and their adopted home of Pawleys Island in 2014. Among her many accomplishments during those years: Director of the Georgetown County Mental Health Center; starting and managing a skilled nursing care facility within St. James Place, one of the first continuing care retirement communities in the South in Baton Rouge; Director of Nursing at a full-service retirement community in Illinois; and developing and managing caregiver education programs for the Alzheimer’s Association in Illinois and Virginia. Along the way, she developed unique skills and experience in caring for the elderly, which led to her becoming a nationally certified Aging Life Care Professional, or Geriatric Care Manager. Upon their return to Pawleys Island in 2014, Anita started AGB and Associates, the first private geriatric care management company in the area. It continues to serve clients in Georgetown and Horry Counties. In light of the continued COVID-19 crisis, and in honor of her 50 years as a nurse and her life-long dedication to the healthcare profession, services will be private and by invitation only. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to either the Smith Free Clinic in Pawleys Island, SC (https://smithfreeclinic.org/donate), Brookgreen Gardens (https://www.brookgreen.org), or the Sea Turtle Rescue Center and Hospital at the South Carolina Aquarium (https://scaquarium.org/sea-turtle-care-center/).