Michael Scotton Bakeman

Michael Bakeman, 45, passed away on September 11, 2023 with his faithful dog Copper by his side in Louisville, Colorado. Even though Mike didn’t like to admit it, he was a huge nerd with a love for science and math. He was a brilliant scientist with a PhD in physics, and an affinity for optical physics, lasers, and particle accelerators. Mike spent time working at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in Los Alamos, NM, as well as the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, CA. Mike went on to work for various companies in Silicon Valley and in the Denver Metro area where he ingeniously invented things that most people will never understand. Mike holds numerous patents for scientific equipment credited to him, and despite his attempts to minimize his internet footprint, you can totally find his patents and his publications on Google Scholar. Mike was a loyal Denver sports fan, and after the Nuggets won the NBA championship in 2023 he stated that he only needed to see the Rockies win the World Series, and then he would have seen all of his teams win a championship. We had a good laugh over that. Mike had an adventurous spirit and loved exploring the world around him. He extensively traveled Europe, visited Iceland, and had lots of adventures in Colorado, California, Nevada, New Mexico, and Oklahoma. He also loved newts, and on one adventure somewhere in California he spent an entire day successfully finding the breeding grounds of a specific newt species, and then stated that he could probably “poach a paper” off of his find. Mike fiercely loved his nieces, Sammy and Ashley, regularly quizzing them on classic rock bands whenever he heard a song he liked. Mike was preceded in death by his grandpas Miguel Valenzuela and Jack Bakeman Sr., both of whom Mike was named after. Mike leaves behind his dedicated sister Valerie (Noah) Keeney and his two nieces named above. He is also survived by his mother Pam (Scott) Bradbury, grandmas Elaine Bakeman and Ann Valenzuela, aunt Merilee (Jere) Eggleston, aunt Patsy Valenzuela, and brother Bryan Bakeman. A memorial service will be held on October 1, 2023 at 10:30 a.m. at the Steinbaugh Pavilion at 824 Front St, Louisville, CO. A gathering will follow at Liquid Mechanics Brewing Company in the back room around noon. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to the American Civil Liberties Union in Mike’s honor.

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