Ann Austin Lampson died in her home in Cranbury, N.J., on Wednesday, Oct. 20. She was 70.

Mrs. Lampson had lived on the Island for many years until she decided to move closer to her family in 2002, and for more than ten years was the "voice of the Vineyard Gazette" as the receptionist there. An avid reader and regular library patron, she had also worked at the Chilmark Library.

Mrs. Lampson was born on June 3, 1934. The valedictorian of her class at Scarsdale High School, she went on to receive her A.B. from Cornell University. She was a tireless volunteer, when her four children were young, for the Girl Scouts, Project Head Start and Meals on Wheels. Although plagued by poor health for the last few years, she still enjoyed traveling and spending time with her grandchildren. A warm and generous person, Ann always managed to give extraordinary and original gifts to her family and friends.

Mrs. Lampson was the smiling face at the front desk of the Vineyard Gazette office in Edgartown from 1989 until 2000. She ranked among the best of the multi-taskers, deftly handling the daily barrage of telephone calls with one hand while completing The New York Times crossword puzzle with the other hand. She was a skilled proofreader and helped out with many different tasks at the paper. She was a crusty mother hen to all the Gazette workers and kept track of everyone's comings and goings with the skill of a senior executive.

"Ann Lampson had her place at the head of our family table here at the newspaper, and she kept us all in line with a tough but loving hand. We depended on her for much more than answering the telephone," recalled Gazette editor Julia Wells.

She is survived by three of her daughters, Margery L. Mott, Carol Lampson, and Barbara Lampson; four grandchildren, Ian Tripp and Abigail, Alex and Susie Mott; her sisters Mary Jane Pease and Susan Herr, and her brother Jamie Austin.

A memorial service will be held at the First Congregational Church in West Tisbury on Saturday, Oct. 30 at 2 p.m., followed by a burial next to her daughter Susan in the Chilmark Cemetery on Abel's Hill and a subsequent reception at the home of Mike and Mary Jane Pease.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in her name to Hospice of Martha's Vineyard, P. O. Box 2549, Oak Bluffs, MA 02557 or to the Princeton House Fund, c/o Princeton Healthcare System Foundation, 253 Witherspoon street, Princeton, N.J. 08540.