Obituary of Gerard A. Baldacci

Gerard Anthony Baldacci, 68, passed away peacefully after a brief illness on February 5, 2025. He was born on May 18, 1956, in Bangor, the fourth of eight children to Robert and Rosemary Baldacci. He was predeceased by his parents, Robert and Rosemary Baldacci, and his beloved brother, Paul.  

Gerry attended St. John’s Elementary School and graduated from Bangor High School Class of 1974. He graduated from the University of Maine in 1978 with a degree in Political Science. He then attended and graduated from Franklin Pierce Law Center in New Hampshire (now the University of New Hampshire Law School) with a Juris Doctorate. 

Starting early in life, Gerry, like all of his siblings, worked at the family restaurant, first the Old Baltimore and Baldacci’s downtown and then Momma Baldacci’s on Broadway in Bangor. He and his siblings also worked together at the family’s seasonal restaurant in Skowhegan, Maine during the summer. As he got older, he continued to work alongside his siblings, most notably, his brother, Paul, at Momma Baldacci’s. He and his sister, Rosemary, also had a restaurant in downtown Bangor known as Momma’s Kitchen. In addition Gerry was elected twice to the Bangor City Council from 1989 to 1992 and 1993 to 1996. 

Gerry was instrumental in the success of the family restaurant through many decades. For the next 25 years, he worked with Ocean Properties Food and Beverage group; first, at the Pete Rose Ballpark Cafe in Florida and then, for over 20 years as chef at the Samoset in Rockport, Maine. At the Samoset he had many dear friends as co-workers including chef Luke and Katrin Highley. Special thanks for the friendship and many kindnesses of Cornelius Russell, the manager of The Samoset Restaurant and Inn. 

Over five decades of work, he managed and prepared great meals for thousands of people. In between his work as a chef, Gerry also worked as a real estate title examiner for Treworgy & Baldacci and he worked on hundreds of Probate cases as a guardian or visitor making reports to the Court on the status of persons under a guardianship or conservatorship. He developed excellent relationships with people at DHHS’ Adult Protective unit as well as with long-time Probate Judge Allen Woodcock. Gerry and Judge Woodcock enjoyed each other’s company, they both were die hard baseball fans (Gerry for the Yankees and Judge Woodcock for the Red Sox), they both wore sneakers to court, and they both were very compassionate and cared deeply about the people they dealt with.

Gerry is missed and beloved by many, but most especially by his brothers and sisters, Robert Baldacci, Jr. and his wife, Beth, Peter Baldacci and his wife, Debbie, John Baldacci and his wife, Karen, Rosemary Baldacci and her partner, Jennifer Lynch, Lisa Baldacci, and Joseph Baldacci and his wife, Beth; and by his many nieces and nephews: Oliva and Caroline Baldacci, Robert III and his wife, Kate, and their children Stella, Dylan, and Greta, Jack Baldacci and his wife, Leah, and their daughter Rose Baldacci, Kate Baldacci and her husband, Domenic, and their children Luca and Sonny Previte, Andrew Baldacci and his wife, Erin, and their children Pierce and Diana Baldacci, Paul Baldacci, Jr. and his wife, Hannah, and their children Leo and Nico Baldacci, Elise Baldacci and her husband, Devon and their children Tate, Otis, and June Deane, and Teddy Baldacci and his partner, Angelina, who are expecting soon, and Alexandra and Caroline Swaney. 

The Baldacci family will be gathering on Thursday, February 27, 2025 at Kiley & Foley Funeral Service, 299 Union Street, Bangor from 3 pm to 7 pm where a Funeral Liturgy and blessings will be held at 7 PM with Fr. Frank Murray of St. Paul the Apostle Parish presiding. A reception for family and friends from 7:30-9:30 pm will follow at Timber Restaurant in downtown Bangor next to the Cross Insurance Center. 

In lieu of flowers donations can be sent to the University of Maine Foundation/ Robert E. and Rosemary K. Baldacci Memorial Scholarship Fund which awards scholarships based on academic achievements to University of Maine students from Bangor. Please indicate it is in Gerry’s memory and it can be mailed to Two Alumni Place, Orono, ME 04469. A celebration of life will also be held later in the year at the Samoset to honor Gerry’s memory and many friendships there.