Obituary: Bruce Gaston Baldi and Diana Jo Baldi

Our beloved parents, Bruce Baldi, 65, and Diana (Wozniak) Baldi, 66, have departed this earthly plane to be amongst the stars. They were always smiling, adventuring, and holding hands during their devoted 35-year marriage. Our family is heartbroken by this sudden loss, but knows their beautiful soulmate journey continues to unfold.

Bruce was born on December 3, 1956 to Gaston and Anne Baldi in New Jersey and Diana was born on September 3, 1955 to Mitch and Flora Wozniak in Ohio. They met at the University of Maryland in an organic chemistry class where they indeed had a lot of chemistry. They fell in love exploring Washington, DC. Diana fully supported Bruce’s ambition to get his PhD at Washington State University, and after he moved across the country they each took on side jobs to cover their long-distance phone bills.

Both lovers of nature and travel, Diana and Bruce brought their three daughters on countless road trips and adventures around the world such as Europe, the Brazilian Amazon, and Alaska. Whenever a business trip popped up, Bruce and Diana seized the opportunity to travel together and explore China, Australia, Trinidad, and New Zealand. Their zest for life was truly unparalleled and service to others was equally as important.

Bruce and Diana devoted their time and energy to nonprofit organizations supporting creativity, community, and conservation. Their contagious joy and selfless character shines brightly in the memories of people around the world who had the pleasure of meeting them, whether once or many times during life-long friendships.

Bruce and Diana are survived by children Brooke Baldi, Siena Baldi, Josie (Pickens) Gruber, and Mike Pickens; siblings Karen Baldi, Donna Baldi, and Mike Wozniak. They were preceded in death by their parents and siblings Maretta (Baldi) Olson, Joe Wozniak, and Cindy (Wozniak) Hart.

Inseparable even in death, a joint service will take place on Tuesday, August 30th at Oglebay Park in Wheeling, WV. Additional details about their memorial, including a website to share pictures and stories of their remarkable lives can be found here: https://bit.ly/baldi2022

I am completely devastated

My beloved, fun-loving, vivacious parents died in a car crash and it feels like my heart will never be whole again. If you ever were lucky enough to meet them, you know how delightful they were. Diana and Bruce were super supportive of everything I do (and I do a LOT of different things). I am so incredibly lucky to be their daughter.

My parents were my soul mates on planet earth and we always had so much fun together my cheeks hurt from riotous laughter

They taught me how to believe in myself, be kind to everyone, fight for what I believe, cultivate abundance through generosity, and not take myself too seriously. My Mom and Dad instilled in me a deep love of nature and curiosity about the world.

I am so thankful for all of the amazing trips we took together. Just last month we were together in Alaska exploring glaciers, seeing breaching humpbacks, and hiking through gorgeous terrain. They even did a polar plunge with me! It was my Dad’s 50th state to visit and I’m so glad we had that precious time together.

Think of me and my sisters as we navigate the impossible road ahead. Our parents have given us all the right tools to get through it.

They always said I was the best parts of each of them:

My mom’s flair for glamour and my dad’s pragmatism.

My dad’s diligent planning and my mom’s spontaneity.

My mom’s never ending empathy and my dad’s ability to set healthy boundaries.

My dad’s introverted thoughtfulness and my mom’s extroverted ebullience.

My mom’s innate desire to make things better and my dad’s bottomless capacity for learning new things.

My dad’s ability to focus intently and work independently and my mom’s ability to command a room.

My mom’s wild child energy and my dad’s patience.

My dad’s knack for finding perfect opportunities to apply to and my mom’s magic touch at making all the details come together.

Apart But Together

When I moved far away to Hawaii 5 years ago, people assumed I didn’t like my family. In actuality, I love my family dearly and the distance brought us closer. They visited me many times and I was able to share my new, exciting environment. We hiked, snorkeled, whale watched, played with an octopus, visited many botanical gardens, saw sunset on the summit of Mauna Kea, and then stargazed while huddled together for warmth.

During the pandemic, we started weekly/bi-weekly zoom family calls to stay in touch. We have done that consistently for two and a half years.

Several years ago when I attend doing CrossFit in Ohio, my parents tried it in Pennsylvania. We loved to share experiences and be involved in each other’s lives, even from afar.

More recently, my parents started doing body combat workout classes and I learned the moves from YouTube videos so I could connect with them. When I visited, we went to several classes together, which was super fun. I really appreciated their enthusiasm for always trying something new.

Eulogy

When the solar eclipse happened a few years ago, I was with my parents in Washington DC. My dad had a chemistry conference and my mom and I tagged along to explore DC. My mom and I visited the National Museum of Women in the Arts and then went shopping--always in the sale section first! I found a pair of glorious, flowy, brightly colored pants on clearance at Anthropologie. Score! They were perfect for my upcoming trip to Hawaii.

I wore those pants almost everyday. Their loose, airy cut made them ideal for warm weather. After a while I noticed small holes appearing so I patched them. Then, they became threadbare and eventually fell apart at the seams. I was crushed because of how much I loved the pants so perfectly suited to me. I could not find a replacement pair online no matter how hard I searched.

Thankfully, my sister Brooke came to visit me in Hawaii and she helped me use the worn out pants to make a pattern. Our mom taught us all how to sew. Brooke and I shopped for similar rayon fabric and I was able to sew a new pair of pants. I then took the usable pieces of the original pants fabric and turned them into pouches, purses, and pockets--anywhere I could possibly inject my treasured pants and help them live on.

Maybe you’re wondering, does she realize she’s talking about pants when she’s supposed to be eulogizing her parents?

My beloved pants--err parents are no longer with us and I can never replace them. However, they have given me and my siblings a blueprint for how to live life to the fullest and we will continue to carry on their memory. Through sewing, traveling, eating delicious food, and laughing until we cry.

I only recently realized the great leap forward my parents made in their parenting style compared to what they had growing up. Normally, people give what they get, but not my parents. Bruce and Diana went way above and beyond. When I’ve talked with people about them, both before and after their death, people describe our family dynamic as a supernova of love and devotion. I have to agree.

The circumstances of their meeting in Maryland were not conducive to the start of a lifelong love story, but that didn’t stop the two of them. My dad was one of two teaching assistants in an organic chemistry class and he normally took the first half of the alphabet, but just this once he took the second half. My mom took the class while working at the EPA in DC and when she thanked my dad for being so helpful his reply was, “I’m paid to be nice to the students so don’t take it personally.”

From an auspicious beginning, Bruce and Diana kept in touch from Maryland to Washington State while my dad worked on his PhD for three years. According to my mom, finishing a PhD in such a short time was unheard of, but my dad was “motivated.” They visited each other during those three years and on one such visit, my dad met my mom at Gate 10 of the Seattle Tacoma Airport and he proposed.

They shared a vision for a life together that included travel, a family, and giving back.

Even though their creative output was unconventional and more corporate, my mom and dad nurtured us with creativity at every possible opportunity. We grew up seeing Broadway shows, going to museums, aquariums, and all kinds of concerts from Arlo Guthrie to Bruce Springsteen. One time we went to a members only night at the natural history museum of Chicago to see flesh eating beetles--it’s no wonder I later tried my hand in at taxidermy!

Their unbridled love of the arts and science set the tone for me and my siblings to explore our creative interests. Raising an art student is some parent’s worst nightmare and my parents raised two of them! Because of how seamlessly we integrate our upbringing into our lives as adults, it’s easy to forget that our epic childhood experiences are not common.

In Libertyville, we turned our three car garage into a haunted house for Halloween. When I was in 4th grade I became obsessed with Ancient Egypt. My parents gave me total creative control to make the haunted house Egypt themed. I made canopic jars with “organs” like grape eyeballs and intestine noodles. Every surface was covered in newsprint that I decorated to resemble an Egyptian crypt. Maybe some parents would be concerned at my macabre fascination, but not mine. They were always all in and supported me no matter what.

Bruce and Diana were visionaries who sent my older sister Josie all the way to Brazil for 11 months in 2002. This was before cell phones and my mom and sister mailed cassette tapes with recorded messages back and forth. Josie went on to major in Portuguese and study linguistics. What a bold nurturing choice.

During Josie’s time in Brazil we came out as a family to visit her and also explore the Amazon on a riverboat cruise. This was 2003, people. Do you remember what the internet was like back then? The complexity of planning a trip for a family of five included all kinds of vaccinations and tricky plane connections. I am astonished that it all went so smoothly, but that was just how my parents handled crazy situations. They always made it work.

The Amazon cruise in Manaus included piranha fishing, seeing sloths, tapping rubber trees, pink dolphins, tasting unfamiliar fruits, and eating chicken for dinner after a crew member caught a wild one scampering along the riverbank. Not your average family vacation. But of course, we are not your average family.

My parents always knew they wanted to live abroad and they moved to Switzerland for a year when I was 6 months old and Josie was 4. My mom was a house frau and she pushed me around in a stroller alllll day throughout Basel. To furnish their apartment, my parents found “spare güt” along the sidewalks.

The Swiss version of Mardi Gras is called Fasnacht and I grew up hearing my parents reminisce about what a wild experience it was for them. My mom and dad always said they wanted to go back one more time so show us the craziness. In February 2016 my mom, dad, sister Brooke, and I went to Switzerland for Fasnacht. My parents were not exaggerating when they said it was insane! So many costumed characters named Waggis pelting us with vegetables, predawn parades, and the burning of winter in Liestahl: picture tiny cobblestone streets filled with stacks of wood on wheels with flames shooting 15 feet into the air. It was beyond crazy and such an amazingly fun experience to share with my family. We always had the most fun together.

Our most recent trip was a masterclass in collaborative planning

I applied to an artist residency program in Alaska and once I was selected, it was obvious that my family should come up to share in the fun. We always pack fun on top of fun.

I explored the Alaskan wilderness with park rangers for 8 days and then my parents and Brooke came up to do an inside passage cruise. We had the most incredible time together kayaking, seeing a calving glacier, and spotting wildlife like orcas, humpbacks, mountain goats, auklet birds, and a charismatic martin.

My parents were even daring enough to jump into 38 degree water with me. Why on earth would they do that? Well, I had never done a polar plunge before and wanted to share another memorable experience with them. They said yes. Well, my mom said yes and then we covertly signed my dad up. But he eventually got onboard. They always said yes to anything I could possibly ask for.

Bruce and Diana just celebrated their 35th wedding anniversary on August 15. It took multiple road trips with each parent for me to piece together the story of how they fell in love. They truly were ships passing in the night and it’s amazing that they found each other and built such a beautiful life together. I learned firsthand what a devoted, dynamic relationship looks like from how they worked together as a team.

Their priorities were so telling: family, fun, good food, health, and adventure

We always had so much fun together my cheeks hurt from riotous laughter.

My mom and dad taught me how to believe in myself, be kind to everyone, fight for what I believe, trust my intuition, cultivate abundance through generosity, and not take myself too seriously. They instilled in me a deep love of nature and curiosity about the world.

Thank you mom and dad for being the best parents ever. I miss you so much and will continue to make you proud. I’m so proud of how you lived your lives to the fullest.

In Loving Memory of My Parents Bruce & Diana Baldi