Sally Carlene Baker McCadden, age 84, of Maple Grove, MN, died peacefully on Aug. 1, 2026 after a well-lived life.

She was born in Hallock, Minnesota in 1941 to Carl and June (Moen) Baker. Her dad owned Carl’s Cafe so that became a family affair, although she didn’t like her position as waitress. She enjoyed being a 4-Her, playing the drums in the school band (as she said, because drumsticks were cheaper than a clarinet). Sally spent a lot of time with her grandparents, (Hans and Tillie Moen), and extended family.

After graduation, she moved to the big city of Minneapolis. She attended Minnesota School of Business, and became a secretary. She loved it. She was meticulously detailed, typed faster than most, and could spot typos and grammatical errors everywhere.

While living in Minneapolis, she met a nice guy at the mailbox in her apartment building…who she dated and then married. Her and Jerry were married for over 50 years. Their first date was to the movie theatre, which turned out to be a weekly date night for decades. They loved golfing together, traveling, and a nightly game of scrabble.

They had two children, Tom and Kelly. She was a proud mom, and spent a lot of time with her kids. The family took lots of vacations that gave us some of the best memories - cabins on the lake, skiing, and road trips.

And then her favorite title, Grandma Sally. She had 6 grandchildren, and loved spending time with them. She happily baked goods for their bake sales, made their favorite Christmas candies (caramels and wreath cookies) and a tray of deviled eggs at every holiday. And of course, lefse at Christmas.

Sally had long lasting friendships. She continued to have lunch and coffee dates with high school friends and “old” neighbors for decades. In 2020, she and Jerry moved to a senior independent living apartment. There she made some great friends that quickly felt like lifelong friendships too.

Sally was a lifelong, avid reader. She always had a book with her. She was probably one of the best “customers” at the local library, so volunteering at the public library and then at the library in her senior building was the perfect fit (and assured she got first dibs on the new books that came in).

She loved golf. While she loved playing it, and always hoping for a hole-in-one, she may have enjoyed watching it even more. Watching the weekend tournaments, and

always rooting for Scottie Scheffler, was always the topic of her weekly phone call with Tom.

Her morning routine included Wordle followed by Sudoku and the crossword puzzle in the newspaper. She’d send off the regular “I got Wordle in 3” email, but somehow never the “I got in 5” email.

At her senior building (which we lovingly refer to as her college sorority), she was part of the knitting club (knitting baby hats for the local hospital), the quilting club, the walking group, movie afternoons, and a weekly game day of Skipbo and Mexican Trains with friends.

Sally always had a smile. She was happy, easy-going, and kind. As someone recently told us, “she was a gentle woman who always had a smile.” 84 years of a life well lived.

Sally was preceded in death by her beloved husband Jerry, her parents Carl and June (Moen) Baker, step mother Lela (Buck) Baker, brother Tom Baker, sister Pamela Faken, niece Kris Anderson, and nephew Robert Anderson.

She is survived by son Tom (Toni) McCadden, daughter Kelly (Steve) Vrchota, grandchildren Merrick McCadden and Ben, Matt (Kalli), Stephanie, Ellie, & Carli Vrchota, brother Bill Baker, sister Linda Anderson, and nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to the Maple Grove Friends of the Hennepin County Library, in Sally’s memory.

A Sal-ebration of Life will be held on Saturday, August 8th in the Great Room at Silver Creek on Main (8200 Main St. N. Maple Grove, MN) at 1:00 p.m. A private burial at Fort Snelling will be at a later date.