Anne Haney of Oak Bluffs and Newton died suddenly on Saturday, May 9 at St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center in Boston.

Born in North Carolina in 1938, Anne was a self-described failure as a Southerner who moved to the Boston area upon her marriage to James Haney in 1960. Others would not describe her as having failed; Anne personified the warmth and charm of the South, welcoming others into her home and life with true grace and the most generous of spirits. Together, Anne and Jim found their niche as seasonal residents and proprietors of Dunmere by the Sea, now it its 143rd year in Oak Bluffs. For almost 40 years, during many of which Jim was an active member and leader of the Vineyard theatrical community (performing and directing primarily with the Vineyard Playhouse), the Island has been an organizing principle of their shared life. Anne’s love of the Island was absolute. Raised largely in Virginia Beach, Va., she felt at home on the shore, even if she never quite adapted to the brisk waters of these beaches, and tended to curl up with a book or a glass of wine when not engaged in running their rental business.

Anne was a quiet person of keen intelligence and great humor. As a teenager, she traveled the East Coast speaking for the American Red Cross. She also worked professionally as the editor of a daily newspaper in Virginia Beach before graduating high school. While studying English Literature at Duke University, she met Jim; they were both 19. Anne graduated college in three years to marry and move north with Jim, who was transferring into Boston University to complete his degree. She went on to complete her master’s degree in public communications at BU.

Anne worked professionally in public relations and development at a variety of Boston area institutions, including The Cotting School, Northeastern University, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and Newton-Wellesley Hospital. A celebratory phone call upon being offered the first of those positions led Anne to Martha’s Vineyard for the first time; a neighbor’s expression of congratulations was “I have a house for you!” The “house” was a small hotel recently converted to rental apartments, Dunmere by the Sea. Within weeks, Anne and Jim were in a business they had never previously considered. Decades later, the Haneys continue to own and manage the Dunmere.

The Island in many ways became Anne’s truest home. She reveled in its beauty and in the rhythms of its seasons. She enjoyed working in her garden, attending plays and concerts, visiting restaurants, and taking her grandchildren to the Flying Horses. Even as her mobility was severely diminished over the past several years, Anne counted on her time on Island and protected it fiercely. Reading at home with the sound of the waves and the soft touch of salt in the air was always time well spent.

Anne leaves her devoted husband, James Haney, of Oak Bluffs and Newton; her son David Haney of Newton; daughter Kathleen (Kate), son-in-law Peter, and grandson Teddy Haney of Longmeadow; daughter Sarah Menchu, grandson Adi Uchendu, and granddaughter Maggie Menchu of Newton and Oak Bluffs; Sarah’s partner Paul Kiley of Newton; mother Emily Carter and brother and sister-in-law George and Janis Walsh of Virginia Beach, Va.; sister and brother-in-law V.L. Van Brackle of Murfreesboro, N.C.; cousins Jim Price of Salisbury, N.C. and Valerie Price of Carrboro, N,C.; and numerous nieces and nephews.

A small memorial is planned on-Island for Anne on June 28 from 2 to 4 p.m. at Dunmere by the Sea, 7 Pennacook avenue in Oak Bluffs. In Newton, there will be a celebration of Anne’s life on May 30 from 3 to 5 p.m. at their home. In lieu of flowers, Jim requests that gifts in Anne’s memory be made to The Oak Bluffs Council on Aging, P.O. Box 1327, Oak Bluffs, MA 02557.