Vera Stankovich Baird

Vera Stankovich Baird, 76, passed peacefully with her loved ones by her side in the late hours of February 4th, 2025 in Bowie, MD, where she has resided for over 40 years. Vera is survived by her husband, Patrick Baird of Bowie, MD; her daughters, Meghan Casto (Dustin) of Morgantown, WV; Veronica Baird (Giovanni Leon) of Washington, DC; her grandchildren, Corbyn Casto, Holden Casto, and Olivia Casto; and her sister, Diana Moore (Tom) of St. Louis, MO; and her niece and nephew, Gregory Moore (Bridget), and Colleen Frank (Michael), also of St. Louis, MO. She was preceded in death by her parents, Ingeborg Stankovich (nee Janensch-Findeisen) and Milovan Stankovich of St. Louis, MO. 

Vera was born on January 7th, 1949 in a displaced persons’ camp in Munich, Germany. Her father, an MP hailing from Montenegro, and her mother a nurse of German origin, hailing from Guatemala, the three of them set sail for a better life in the United States of America. As legend has it, once docked in New York, the captain of the ship took Vera for several hours to have her hair done and returned with a new dress and shoes— all of this because she was the most beautiful baby on the ship. Her parents were sponsored by a family within the Eastern Orthodox Church in St. Louis, MO. Vera graduated from Theodore Roosevelt High School in 1966, and then attended the University of Missouri in Columbia, MO. In 1972, Vera accepted a position in Information Systems at Bendix Field Engineering in Columbia, MD, where she worked for almost 40 years. She was the first woman in her department. Although the name of the company changed several times, her unwavering work ethic did not. It was while working for Bendix, and living in Maryland that she met her husband and married in 1977, and later had her two daughters. Vera is known for her long-standing volunteer position as the Altar Guild Director at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bowie. Also at Trinity, Vera volunteered as a Sunday School Teacher for many years. She is known by her friends as funny, quick-witted, and kind-hearted, as well as a faithful friend. Her favorite activity was going out to lunch with her friends from either work or church. Vera’s friends have said that she spent much of that time bragging about her children and grandchildren. 

A celebration of life service is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 22, 2025 at Trinity Lutheran Church, 6600 Laurel-Bowie Rd, Bowie, MD 20715. There will be light refreshments to follow for all who wish to attend. The family is asking in lieu of flowers, to donate to Trinity Lutheran Church, or to the Alzheimer’s Association. Her family would like to thank those at Trinity Lutheran Church for visiting Vera when she was home-bound, and then when she was at Charter Senior Living of Bowie. Furthermore, the family would like to thank the staff at Charter Senior Living for her care this past year in battling Alzheiner’s Disease.