Elizabeth M. Baylis

On Tuesday, May 29th, Elizabeth M. Baylis, known to all as Tina, passed away after a brief and brave battle with pancreatic cancer. Her life will be celebrated with a service on Thursday, June 7th, at 3:00 pm, at the First Presbyterian Church of San Anselmo. Tina was born on November 22, 1946, in Baltimore, Maryland. An identical twin and one of seven children born to Elaine and Joseph Mack, she grew up in the nearby town of Ruxton. On a family vacation in her teens, Tina visited San Francisco for the first time, and in 1969, she and her younger sister Millicent moved across the country to fulfill a dream of living there. They shared an apartment on Jones Street until Tina met her future husband, Butler (Buzz) W. Baylis. Tina and Buzz were married in 1971, and together, they moved to Corte Madera in 1976. Their daughter Sarah was born later that year, and a second daughter Katherine (Katie), was born in 1979. Tina and Buzz were married for 25 years. Tina was a lifelong community volunteer, aiding causes near to her heart and causes that touched her loved ones. After the death of her older brother Jerry to AIDS in 1988, she sought out the services of the Center for Attitudinal Healing in Sausalito and went on to became a volunteer at the Center, facilitating support groups for the grieving, in particular for children grieving the loss of a parent and people living with AIDS. She also provided one-on-one support for people with terminal illnesses, helping to usher them peacefully through the process of dying. In 1994, she was named Marin Volunteer of the Year, and in 1995, she was named California Volunteer of the Year, both honors given in recognition of her work at the Center. Tina had a natural curiosity: wherever her life intersected with an organization or a cause, she worked to learn all she could about it, and often, it became a new passion. She was the personal assistant to a local philanthropic family, and out of that work, she developed a deep devotion to the arts, particularly the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art and the San Francisco Ballet. Tina also had a remarkable skill for organizing and planning and a great eye for detail, which served her well in her professional life. She was passionate about financial education and financial independence for women, and she provided bookkeeping support to widows. She will be remembered as a loving mother, adoring grandmother, and ardent friend. She loved to travel and to hike on Ring Mountain, and she was a recent bicycling enthusiast, often seen cruising around the neighborhood with a grin on her face. She never missed an opportunity to wear a chic scarf. All who knew her will remember the joy she took in good food and wine, tending to her house, gathering her family, playing with her grandchildren, and getting into trouble with her twin sister. Tina is survived by her two daughters, Sarah Connolly of Reading, MA (married to James Connolly), and Katherine Caradec of Oakland, CA (married to Andre Caradec); grandchildren Millicent and Owen Connolly of Reading, MA; twin sister Toni Wizenberg of Oklahoma City, OK; brothers John Mack of Oklahoma City, OK, and Jody Mack of Snowmass, CO; nieces Molly Wizenberg of Seattle, WA (married to Brandon Pettit), Hillary Youngs of Issaquah, WA, and Meredith Mack of Oklahoma City, OK; nephew Jason Mack of Truckee, CA (married to Maura Mack); and grandnephew Declan Mack of Truckee, CA. She was preceded in death by her parents Elaine