The Woman Who Inspired it All

"I promise you, I'm going to change the world for you."

This was the promise — the vow that started it all. Our founder and CEO, Richard Baker, made this solemn commitment to his mother, Catherine Baker, as she battled breast cancer. It was a moment born from love, pain, and determination — a declaration that her strength and spirit would live on.

Catherine Baker was a woman in an uphill battle, locked in a death-defying standstill with one of the most relentless diseases known to medicine. Despite the pain, the anguish, and the physical toll of breast cancer, she lived with passion, humor, and an infectious sense of joy. She brought light into every room she entered. A fiery redhead from Boston, her grit and grace left a lasting impression on everyone who crossed her path. Though she ultimately lost her battle, she went down fighting — and she left behind a legacy: her two sons.

Richard inherited more than just her will — he inherited her resilience, her relentless drive to create change, and her unwavering belief that one person’s actions could ripple outward to uplift entire communities. Inspired by her legacy, he picked up her torch not as a burden, but as a mission. With every decision he made, he carried forward her vision — to build something lasting, something meaningful. Through his work, he aimed to make the world not only brighter and better, but more compassionate and inclusive, impacting countless lives in the process.

To end this tribute, we leave you with a lyric from a song Richard often sang to his mother in her final days — a song that encapsulates his love for her, and the promise he continues to fulfill every day:

"I will make you queen of everything you see

I'll put you on the map, I'll cure you of disease"

-"House of Gold" by Twenty One Pilots