Museum honors Father Baker's legacy

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - It's hoped that one day Father Nelson Baker will become a saint.

Now, there's a new museum dedicated to his life and legacy.

"I was about 6 years old," said John Phillips.

Phillips, now 86 years old, has fond memories of growing up in Father Nelson Baker's orphanage.

"I was an altar boy for him and I used to bring his breakfast," Phillips shared.

He's one of only five known Baker Boys still alive, and says this new museum is a fitting tribute to the man who treated him so well.

"It's beautiful. You don't know what to think of it," said Phillips.

Bishop Edward Kmiec blessed the space and cut the ribbon on the new Father Nelson Baker Museum, on the feast day of Our Lady of Victory.

Most Rev. Edward Kmiec said, "He was a priest, but he was a lot more than that and one the great figures in our area."

Inside, among other things, a watercolor rendition of the Basilica prior to its construction, interactive computers, the hats Father Baker wore, literally and figuratively, and a replica of a bedroom in the orphanage.

Phillips was asked if it was how he remembered it, he answered, "Right, these are the old beds."

The $720k renovation, featuring a new chapel and gift shop, triples the size of the old museum.

Big enough to accommodate an influx of visitors if Father Baker is beatified, making him one step closer to being named a saint.

"The process has come a long way and we have some hope that maybe as soon as sometime next year we will hear the good word that he will be beatified," Most Rev. Edward Kmiec.

Visitors say this museum will help his legacy live on.

"Oh I think it's beautiful. It's just wonderful," said 98-year-old Margaret Carey, who worked at Baker Infant Home.

"People are going to come to see this from all over the world," said visitor Bonnie Morris.