JASPER BAXTER: A Needy-People
Person
Jasper Baxter was a needy-people person. He once made
it his Saturday-morning routine
to deliver meals from a food bank to hungry homes in
Philadelphia, where he lived with his wife, Lillian. When
he heard of a mortgage lender who was charging an old
woman monthly payments that exceeded her Social Security
income, he took his outrage all the way to the
Pennsylvania legislature, where there was enough interest
in the matter to make the company back down, said a
brother, Dennis Baxter.
Jasper Baxter, 45, ran twice for state representative
and lost both times. But he had a job that still allowed
him to lend a helping hand. He was a consultant at Lee
Hecht Harrison, a career services company at which he
helped people who had lost jobs find work or start their
own businesses.
On Sept. 11, he was conducting a two-day seminar on
the 93rd floor of 2 World Trade Center.
"He was really good at getting people excited and
motivated to get out there and find employment," said
Elva Bankins, senior vice president and general manager
of the company's Philadelphia office, where she said
condolence cards and calls have poured in from grateful
clients.
The youngest of seven children, Mr. Baxter grew up as
the baby who everybody felt should be told what to do,
his brother said. That meant he learned fairly early in
life how to stand his ground, his brother said. "We all
offered him advice," he said. "He learned how to defend
his position."
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