Named "Sarah Anne Adams" after her maternal grandmother,

Sarah Anne Rippey Best, but was always known as "Anne".

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Anne Adams Mayhew Helms

March 8, 1935 - December 16, 2021

Anne Helms passed away peacefully in her home in Salinas on the morning of December 16, 2021, at age 86.

Anne was born in San Francisco to Virginia Best Adams and Ansel Adams and spent her childhood in San Francisco and the idyllic Yosemite Valley. Surrounded by the majestic cliffs and gushing waterfalls, Anne was always most comfortable in nature. She was raised in an artistic and musical home, where all types of people were accepted. These early lessons were a large part of what informed the essence of her personality. She attended the Dominican school in Marin County and graduated from Stanford University in 1957 with a degree in English. Later in life, she earned an MA in Anthropology from San Francisco State University.

Anne met her first husband, Charles Mayhew, when they both spent a college summer working in Yosemite National Park. They married in 1956 and had three daughters. After Chuck died in a motorcycle accident in 1966, Anne raised her 3 daughters alone (with lots of help from Chuck's mom, Merle) and took over the family business (then 5 Associates, now Museum Graphics), a publishing company that produces stationery items and matted prints, primarily of the works of her father, Ansel Adams.

Anne married her second husband, and the love of her life, Ken Helms in 1971.

Anne and Ken retired in 1989 and toured the country in their motor home. They reconnected with several old friends and made a few new ones as they visited many obscure places while Anne researched the family genealogy. She later self-published four books of family history.

Eventually, Anne and Ken settled in their beautiful home in the rolling hills above Salinas, CA, and spent many years traveling the world, including much of Europe, China, Africa, New Zealand, Costa Rica, the Galapagos and more. In the course of their travels, Ken and Anne developed friendships throughout the world.

Always politically active, in recent years, Ken and Anne started the Humanist Association of the Monterey Bay Area and were involved in a multitude of social justice causes, most recently Black Lives Matter.

Ken died in December 2020 of Covid-19 and related complications.

Anne loved her daughters, her husband Ken, books, music, nature, hiking, travel, making new friends, helping others, Quiddler, Rummikub, hummingbirds, chocolate, and beauty.

She was kind, loving, compassionate, interesting, intelligent, beautiful, generous and has a wonderful sense of humor.

Anne was a fighter, surviving many physical and emotional challenges. She never gave up, and always kept a life-affirming attitude.

Anne leaves behind her three loving daughters, Virginia Mayhew (Amy Hirsch), Alison Jaques and Sylvia Desin (Greg) and her 4 grandchildren Nick, Chandler (Gia), Geneva and Danielle, as well as a great-grandson, Mario, and Amy's daughter, Molly; as well as Ken's three sons, Jeff (Lisa), Nathan And Drew (Kathy) and their children and grandchildren. She also leaves her brother Michael (Jeanne), and many dear friends from all over the world.

In lieu of flowers, please send donations in her name to American Friends Society Committee; Humanist Association of Monterey Bay Area; the Yosemite Conservancy; or Planned Parenthood Mar Monte.

A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date.

Published by Monterey Herald Obits on Dec. 26, 2021.