Commissioners present second Cypress Legacy Award
Rudy Baker, right, speaks after accepting the Cypress Legacy Award from Commissioners Chairman Patrick Harris, left. Also pictured is Commissioner Butch Lawter.
SMITHFIELD — The Johnston County Board of Commissioners has presented its second Cypress Legacy Award to retired U.S. Army Col. Rudy Baker of Clayton.
The award recognizes individuals whose leadership, service, and commitment have helped shape the County and improve the lives of its citizens.
Baker’s life reflects equal parts determination, service and giving back.
Born near Four Oaks in 1936, he grew up in a one-room house on a dirt road, the son of a sharecropper. After graduating from Selma High School in 1954, Baker briefly worked in a furniture factory in High Point. After deciding that life was not for him, he entered an Army recruiting office and enlisted.
That decision launched a distinguished 33-year military career.
Baker entered Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning, Georgia, in 1961. Of the 238 men who began the course, only 119 graduated.
Baker went on to become an Airborne infantry officer and served two tours in Vietnam. During his first tour, with the 101st Airborne Division, he commanded an infantry company and received a Bronze Star for his leadership during a nighttime attack by the Viet Cong.
The war also brought profound loss. On Sept. 18, 1965, Baker’s unit lost 13 men during a helicopter assault. He has never forgotten them, noting that their names appear together on Panel 2E, Row 86 of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.
Baker returned to Vietnam in 1968 as an adviser to the 23rd Army of the Republic of Vietnam. His military career also included a two-year assignment in Iran, work at the Pentagon and the Army War College, and extensive service at Fort Bragg. He retired as a colonel in 1987.
After his military career, Baker spent 18 years with First Citizens Bank, eventually becoming a senior vice president. But his commitment to service did not end with his retirement.
He has devoted much of his later life to helping fellow veterans. Baker has served on the board of the Airborne & Special Operations Museum since its inception and is a former chairman of the Johnston County Veterans Service Advisory Board. He also belongs to several local veterans organizations.
Baker is also committed to preserving the stories of those who served. He is a co-author of “The Boys of Benning,” a book that members of his Officer Candidate School class wrote about their military experiences. He has donated copies of the book to every Johnston County public high school through their JROTC programs.
Baker and his wife, Pat, live in Clayton. They have seven children, 15 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren.
Page last updated on: September 14, 2026