In Memoriam of Frank Baxter

Dearest Kathy, and beloved family and friends of Frank...

I'm Alan Arkatov, an educator, and someone who was lucky enough to be recruited to be part of Frank's lifelong battalion...  I was extraordinarily honored, like so many of us here today, to be mentored by him.

Who was Frank Edward Baxter? He was the ultimate people person, an optimist, always curious, lover of innovation, and implementer of crucial endeavors that needed to be scalable and sustainable... and he had an exceptional ability to bring together the best and brightest for whatever business or societal issues he was working on.

Education was central to all that Frank thought about and tried to impact in the last 25 years...and it was all predicated on his humble beginnings in a rural area of CA, located between Sacramento and Reno.  Education and the Air Force were his ways out... and they became the building blocks of how he thought about his priorities, and how to effect meaningful change and outcomes.

Always seeking more knowledge about how to improve educational outcomes, and the technology tools that could help accomplish that , Frank had asked me to help arrange a trip to Apple Computer in April of 2010.  We took a bunch of Alliance principals and spent most of the day learning about the latest that Apple had to offer, and when were leaving the campus at the end of that day, I spotted Steve Jobs -- the Steve Jobs--walking across the campus, in his signature black turtleneck and blue jeans.  I whispered to Frank, "look, it's him..." and without missing a beat, he quicky took a diagonal path across the courtyard area and introduced himself to Mr. Jobs.

Steve's entourage was about ten yards behind him, and I could see that they were quite perplexed as to who this man was that was talking to Steve. He introduced himself, congratulated Steve on his recent unveiling of the iPad, and then began his pitch for the Alliance... including what the Alliance's per pupil costs were for building out seats vs that of LAUSD, the latest test scores of Alliance students, thoughts on integrating the latest technology into the classroom.  He then proceeded to give Steve a series of options for site visits to current and prospective Alliance schools!

With Steve's entourage moving in, Frank then closed the conversation with "Thank you Steve, for all that you do, and as Steve began walking away with his entourage, he pivoted and turned back to Frank, and said "No, thank you Frank, for all that you do."

There it was, all on display... his confidence in his mission, and his remarkable ability to covey the importance of his mission, sell it just a little — with sincerity and purpose — and then close with that extraordinary smile, the voltage of which could power an entire City.

I liked to call these types of interactions "Close Encounters of the Frank kind..."

Now, I'm clearly not an expert on church protocols or the afterlife, and will of course defer to Msgr. Torgerson, but I'm extremely confident that after entering the Gates of Heaven, Frank quickly spoke with Saint Peter, and figured out his plan on how to best approach God... re schools, children and families who are not getting what they need! 

For our friends at the Alliance, DaVinci Schools, the ALS Association, Stand Together, UC Berkely, the LA Opera or LACMA... if you ever get a large contribution from an anonymous entity, just know that it has likely been guided by Frank, working behind the scenes, with God.

In addition to his remarkable listening and synthesizing abilities, Frank believed that eyes were indeed a window to a person's soul... his ability to look someone in the eyes and connect with him or her in tangible ways, was a hallmark of Frank's interactions... even as thing got harder and harder for him physically, he always wanted to connect with people.

Back in December, in one of his last public appearances, Anita Landecker gave a special tribute to Frank at Exed's annual luncheon. The ravages of ALS had taken their toll, and he was unable to hold his neck in an upright position... and although it took me a while to understand what he was saying, he mouthed the words "I need to see their eyes."  So I tilted the wheelchair back.  And as the throngs of individuals came over to pay their respects to Frank, I watched him do what he had done so often throughout his life.... deflect their praise for things that he had helped accomplish, and look each of them in the eyes, and sincerely thank each person for what they were doing... That was Frank Baxter.

I watched him close an education event at the home of Sabrina Kay, by asking Kathy to sing to all those assembled... and as she sang "Danny Boy", nothing was more beautiful than seeing him beam with pride and admiration for the love of his life, Kathy... That was Frank Baxter.

Tony Ressler shared with me his amazement in watching Frank evolve from the CEO of Jeffries to the force that he became in philanthropy...  adapting the HR skills that were needed to address whatever mission he was on, and fulfilling his destiny as a man of action.  That was Frank Baxter.

Fundamentally, Frank believed in the individual. Whether it was his trusted aide for 30 years, Connie, or the teachers, administrators and (most importantly) the students that he gave so much of his time to, especially in helping those from underserved communities... Brett Brewer still speaks in awe of the man who would join him in judging shark tank competitions at the high school named after Frank's mother — where Frank would spend countless hours with individual students, helping them think about new ways to solve challenges.  That was Frank Baxter.

As many of you know, Frank loved collecting meaningful quotes, from what he read and from people he met... and was always ready with a notepad to write down a new one, and to have a pocketful of "Frankisms" ready to be deployed on a moment's notice. 

My favorite "Frankism" was one that he shared with Matt Wunder on one of their frequent walks: “Mature ambition is not knowing what you want and how to get it, but knowing what you have and how to give it.” 

With that in mind, please know that we're working with Kathy on something special that Frank was very excited about, that captures his essence in this place called Los Angeles... stay tuned.  For now, please allow me to channel Frank one more time, in this extraordinary community setting:  sometime today, please share one important big thing that you commit -- or recommit --  yourself to do, for others...

In closing I'd like to share a few quotes that Frank loved, and for me, epitomized the man.... the first, was from Ralph Waldo Emerson:

“If the single man plant himself indomitably on his instincts, and there abide, the huge world will come round to him.”

The second, was a passage from Tennyson's poem "Ulysses," which expresses a spirit of determination and relentless pursuit of knowledge and experiences, despite age or challenges:

I am a part of all that I have met
Though much is taken, much abides
That which we are, we are–
One equal temper of heroic hearts
Strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.

As Angelenos, we've been challenged and pummeled in recent times, but whenever I was with Frank, despite how ALS had cruelly ravaged his body, I never heard one, single complaint... and I always left feeling renewed and invigorated.

My last email exchange with Frank was one where I sent him the words of no less an American poet than Rocky Balboa:  "It ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit, and keep movin’ forward." It's about how much you can take, and keep moving forward." 

This is the time for the Frank Baxters of the world.  Those that take the hits, and keep moving forward. This is the time for the Frank Baxters, those with indomitable spirits, who keep moving forward, and are a constant reminder of a greater individual and collective purpose.

God bless Frank, god bless Kathy and the Baxter family, and god bless all of you who will carry the spirit of Frank forever.  I love you, Frank.