Mrs. Anna Love Oliver Rankin, 97, of Cabaniss Drive, passed away at Cleveland Pines Nursing Center. Anna Love is the daughter of the late Manton M. Oliver Sr. and Mary Love Oliver. Her parents were the co-founders of the Reidsville Review. A Reidsville High School graduate, she attended Women's College in Greensboro and grew up in a newspaper family. She had a love for writing and knew intuitively how to pick the most definitive word to make even the most ordinary circumstances sound unique and interesting. She became a feature writer for the Reidsville Review and also contributed feature stores to the Winston-Salem Journal, the Atlanta Constitution and the North Carolina Education Association. She was the co-founder of the "Studio Group" in Reidsville in the l940's and is credited as having given the group its name. Upon moving to Shelby in l954, she became active in various civic organizations and especially the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer. A Sunday school teacher for many years, she sang in the choir and was a member of the Altar Guild. She was always the first person to greet every newcomer to her little Episcopal Church in both Reidsville and Shelby. She retired from Cleveland Community College and remained active into her early 90's. She loved to shop for bargains and work daily crossword puzzles. Having been a resident of Cleveland Pines Nursing Center in Shelby, since 2005, she made many friends there and often would be heard singing joyfully throughout the facility. She was an inspiration yet so humble, and she touched many lives. She will be greatly missed.
In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, John H. Rankin Jr.; brothers, Manton M. Oliver Jr. and John A. Oliver; sister, Pam O. Lemons. She is survived by her sons, John H. Rankin III of Shelby and R. Evan Palmer of Anderson, S.C.; her daughter, Pamela L. White (Bill), of Anderson; sister, Catherine O. Steger of Grottoes, Virginia; grandchildren, Walter M. Jernigan Jr., Katherine P. DeMasi, Sara L. Baker and Anna Beth Hlavacs; and six great-grandchildren. The family appreciates all the love and care given to their mother while a resident at Cleveland Pines Nursing Center. A very special thanks to Audra Surratt and Hospice. The funeral services were held on October 22, 2008. Father Richard Rowe officiated. Memorials: Episcopal Church of the Redeemer, 510 West Sumter Street, Shelby, North Carolina. Cecil M. Burton Funeral Home and Crematory