Laura Hargis Baxter, 70, of Gloucester, Va., passed away peacefully, surrounded by family, on December 19, 2025.
Born November 13, 1955 to Dolores Hargis (now Mergenthaler) and Dr. William Jennings Hargis Jr., she was a lifelong Gloucester resident and a graduate of Gloucester High School and Christopher Newport University.

After a life-altering accident in 1987, Laura became a traumatic brain injury survivor and a dedicated advocate for people with disabilities, including supporting passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

She was active with the Brain Injury Association of Virginia and remained deeply involved in her community.
She is survived by her husband of 45 years, John F. Baxter; her children, Racheal Baxter Cook (Jameson), Mary Kathryn Keene (Jason), and Elizabeth Quayle Baxter (Dale Roane); eight grandchildren; her mother, Dolores Mergenthaler; her stepmother, Marcia Hargis; siblings, and extended family.

A memorial service will be held on January 10 at 1 p.m. at Abingdon Episcopal Church, Hayes, Va. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Brain Injury Association of Virginia.