Longtime Bristol Twp. Teacher Dies, Community Mourns

April 8, 2023

Longtime Bristol Township School District teacher Donna Baker has died unexpectedly, leaving the school community in mourning.

Baker, 54, passed away on Sunday, April 2 after a brief illness, according to the school district.

She is being remembered for being a compassionate and caring educator who always had her students’ best interests at heart.

Before beginning to teach language arts and reading at Franklin D. Roosevelt Middle School in 2001, Baker started out as a substitute teacher in 1998. Afterwards, she worked as a teacher at Buchanan Elementary School before moving on to Brookwood Elementary School, where she taught fourth grade until her untimely death.

“Donna believed that teachers have three loves: the love of learning, the love of learners, and the love of bringing the first two loves together,” said her fellow fourth-grade faculty team members. “She had a special place in her heart for every single one of her students. She cared and worried for them as if they were her own son or daughter. Donna will always be in our hearts and a part of the Bristol Township School District family.”

Baker was also known for her pens of various colors and sizes, and her extraordinary collection will be remembered by her students, district officials said.

Principal Jacqueline Cubberly described her as fiercely loyal to her colleagues and students.

“Donna was a beloved member of the Bristol Township School District, and our thoughts and deepest condolences are with all of those who were fortunate to know and work with her,” said Superintendent Michael Nitti.

A viewing for Mrs. Baker will be held on Tuesday, April 11 from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at Wade Funeral Home in Bristol Borough. It will be followed by a Mass at 11 a.m. at St. Mark’s Church on Radcliffe Street.

Due to many staff and students wishing to attend the services, Brookwood Elementary School will operate on a two-hour delayed opening schedule on Tuesday, April 11.

No breakfast will be served, and doors will open at 11:05 a.m. for all students, with the official start of the school day at 11:20 a.m. Lunch will be served as 11:30 a.m.

Baker, whose maiden name was Zazzarino, was born in Bristol and raised in Levittown. She had been a Montgomery County resident for the past 18 years.

Baker is survived by her husband, Matthew, her children Lily, Aidan, and Liam, her parents James and Anita Zazzarino, and her sister Christine Zazzarino.

In lieu of flowers, the family is asking that donations can be made to her children through Ameriprise Financial. Checks can be made payable to “Ameriprise Financial” and forwarded to Christine Zazzarino or mailed to Ameriprise Financial, Attention Fish & Associates, 1105 Laurel Oak Road, Vorhees, NJ 08043.