Ann Elizabeth (Baugh) Wilkerson passed away peacefully at her home in Edmond, Oklahoma, on Jan. 19, 2024, surrounded by her family. Ann was born on May 12, 1948, in Mexico, to Olin and Elizabeth (Ankrom) Baugh. She grew up on her family’s farm outside Middletown, with her sister and cousins, and later her nieces, as playmates and neighbors. She was a 1966 graduate of Wellsville-Middletown R-1 High School and a 1970 graduate of the University of Missouri St. Louis.
On Aug. 12, 1967, Ann married Robert Wilkerson at Hopewell Baptist Church in Wellsville. They were married for 56 happy years. They welcomed one son, Chad, and one daughter, Dana.
Ann began her teaching career at the Ritenour School District in St. Louis. After the family’s return to Montgomery County, she and Robert owned and operated Town and Country Market in Montgomery City and The Country Store in Middletown. In 1981, she went back to teaching at Montgomery County R-2. She taught second grade for six years before starting GLEAM, the district’s gifted program, and teaching a host of children from grades two through seven for ten years. Ann impacted many young lives during her teaching career through her classes as well as Odyssey of the Mind, the Stock Market Team, the Academic Bowl Team, College for Kids, and other various extracurricular activities.
After retiring from teaching in 1997, Ann was the vice-president for the family produce brokerage business, ABCD Sales, in Montgomery City. She and Robert spent two decades working side by side and traveling the country going to produce shows, attending sales meetings, and making many friends along the way.
Ann was a long-time member of Hopewell Baptist Church, where she took on many roles, including pianist, GA leader, Sunday School teacher, VBS teacher, WMU member and leader, and numerous other service positions. She especially loved teaching about the Fruit of the Spirit.
She was a strong advocate for people with mental illness. For more than a decade, Ann was on the board of the Arthur Center in Mexico, and she led NAMI support group meetings and started a group in Montgomery City. She was also a member of Alpha Kappa Delta, Montgomery County Retired Teachers Association, and the GFWC Woman's Club.
Ann adored her grandkids and could often be found in the audience for their games, recitals, plays, and school presentations. She loved having tea parties with her daughter, granddaughters, nieces, and friends. Ann also enjoyed the annual pilgrimage to Jupiter, Florida, for St. Louis Cardinals Spring Training with her husband, kids, grandkids, and a host of other family members and friends over the course of twenty years.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Olin and Elizabeth Baugh; her parents-in-law, Lee and Virginia Wilkerson; her sister and brother-in-law, Mary Ellen and Larry Dunn; her infant brother, Duane Lee Baugh; and her sister-in-law, Laura Wilkerson.
She is survived by her husband, Robert; her son and daughter-in-law, Chad and Beth Wilkerson; her daughter, Dana Wilkerson; and her four grandchildren, Maura, Claire, Nicholas, and Vera Wilkerson; all of Edmond, Okla. She is also survived by her three nieces, Kathy (Tom) Barr of West Plains; Laura Lee (Butch) Rose of Centralia; and Julie (Adam) Gatson of Vandalia; as well as their children and grandchildren.
A Funeral Service will be held on Sat., Jan. 27, at 11:30 a.m. at the Hopewell Baptist Church in Wellsville, with the Reverend Dick Hinson officiating. Interment will follow in the Fairmont Cemetery in Middletown.
A Visitation will be held on Sat., Jan. 27, at the Hopewell Baptist Church from 8:30 a.m. until 11 a.m., with a brief 30-minute break before the service begins at 11:30a.m.
Memorial contributions can be sent to the Arthur Center, 340 Kelley Pkwy, Mexico, Mo. 65265.
