Sonja Howell Baum

Our beloved Sonja of Northglenn, CO, passed away September 26, 2024, in Jacksonville, FL, a victim of heart disease. She was born July 19, 1943, to Sigrid Jonsson Howell and Charles Cook Howell, Jr., in Jacksonville, FL. Her father was a lawyer and her mother, Sigrid, was a Swedish immigrant. Her grandmother Olga was an American with a colorful past, having been raised in the silver mining town of Kingston, NM, in the 1890's. Olga met her Swedish husband in Paris in 1910.

Sonja's family lineage greatly influenced her later interest learning to speak French and Japanese. Sonja, her two brothers and one sister were raised in a home which still stands in Jacksonville. She graduated from Robert E. Lee High School, and Sweetbriar College in Amherst, VA. She spent her junior year abroad at the Sorbonne in Paris. She finished her education at Emory University in Atlanta, GA, with a Master of Arts in Teaching.

Following this she taught for several years then moved to New York City and worked at Smith Barney stock brokerage (now Morgan Stanley). She met her husband, Christopher Baum, in New London, CT, where he was stationed with the Navy. They married in 1970, and moved to Kittery, ME, where their first son, Christopher Baum Jr. (now known as Chuck), was born in 1972. They moved to Yokosuka, Japan, later that year where daughter Nina was born in 1974. From there they went to Camp Hill, PA, where son Jack was born in 1977. Duty stations in Mayport, FL; Washington, DC; Subic Bay, Philippines; and Albuquerque, NM; followed. Chris retired from the Navy in 1987 in Albuquerque where they operated an interior decorating business together until 1996. Her mother Sigrid lived with them from 2004 until her death in 2017 at age 100. They moved to Colorado Springs in 2009 and to Northglenn, CO in 2014.

Sonja always enjoyed her church bible studies, art, playing cards, and traveling to visit her kids. She loved children and dogs and they loved her as well. She especially enjoyed working with the children in AWANA at church until her illness sapped her energy. Her quick wit and fondness for Swedish jokes always amused her family and friends.

Sonja is survived by her husband, Christopher, brothers John and Charles, and sister Una, all of Jacksonville, Florida; her son Chuck of Wheat Ridge, CO; son Jack and daughter-in-law Rachael of Longmont, CO; daughter Nina of Redding, CT; and grandson Cuchulainn of Wheat Ridge, CO. She will be greatly missed by all.

A memorial service for Sonja will be held Saturday, September 28, 2024 at 3:00 PM at St. Mark's Episcopal Church, 4129 Oxford Ave., Jacksonville, FL 32210. See stmarksjacksonville.org for a live feed and information on the service.

A second memorial service will take place on Saturday, October 12, 2024 at 3:00 PM at Calvary Church of Broomfield, 12700 Sheridan Blvd., Broomfield, CO 80020.