Maria Baers died on 4 March 1959, leaving behind a lasting legacy in Belgian Christian social and women's movements.
Maria Baers died on 4 March 1959, closing a life dedicated to social action, education, and political representation of women in Belgium. Her death marked the end of an era for the first generation of Christian-democratic women who had fought to build institutional structures supporting working women, ranging from vocational training to labour law reform.
Her legacy persisted through the organizations she helped found and lead, notably within the Catholic women workers' movement (Kristelijke Arbeidersvrouwen, a precursor to what is known today as Femma), which continued to grow and advocate for women's rights long after her death.
Baers is remembered as a foundational figure — often called a 'spiritual mother' — of the Flemish Christian women's movement, and her contributions to social work education and legislative reform for women workers left a durable institutional imprint in Belgium's social and political landscape.