Helen Baker Hardy

Helen died on January 26, 2022 at Saint Luke’s Hospital in Overland Park, Kansas at the age of 93 after a brief illness with Covid-19. She was born in Boonville, North Carolina to Thomas Bryant Baker and Zetta Viola Ray on November 30, 1928.

Helen attended public schools in Boonville, then attended Appalachian State Teachers College in Boone, NC, where she met and later married Glenn Edward Renfrow of Charlotte, NC. They had four children: Randall, Stephen, David, and Nancy. Glenn died in an automobile accident in 1960, and in 1963, Helen met and married Rev. David Paul Hardy of Hollywood, FL. Together they raised seven children, with the addition of John, Debbie, and James.

Her Christian faith was central to her life; she spent most of her life helping David with his Christian ministry and raising her family. In her later years, she had a fulfilling funeral services career in several states. In retirement, Helen and David settled in the Kansas City area to be close to family. Helen’s positive outlook, generous spirit, and welcoming personality were obvious to all and she will be greatly missed.

Helen was preceded in death by Glenn Renfrow and David Hardy, as well as by her parents and her brothers and sisters: Lola, Ann, Ralph, Glen, Dorothy, James, Betty, Mary, Nancy, and Roynal. She is survived by her children: Randall (partner, Karla Prickett), Stephen (Barbara), David (Janice), Nancy Ankerholz (Rian), John (Amor), James (Lisa), Deborah Tucker (David), 15 grandchildren, and 10 great-grandchildren, as well as by former daughter-in-law Saralyn Reece Hardy. She was blessed with numerous nieces and nephews whom she held close to her heart. She is also survived by her much loved calico cat, CoCo, who was her constant companion.