Irene Haynes

Irene Faye Massie Haynes passed peacefully in the early morning November 20, 2021, at Silver Bluff.  Irene was born in Hamilton, Ohio to Olus Delane Massie and Laura Rose McIntosh, September 13, 1928, the first of four sisters.  She is proceeded in death by her husband of 42 years, William (Bill) Ray Haynes, and her sisters, Geneva Mitchell (Sam), Wanda Smathers and Oleen Misbach (Dr. Henry Misbach).

Irene is survived by her sons William Delane Haynes (Susie) of Whittier, NC; David Lee Haynes (Jeanie Frye) of Cornelius, NC; three grandchildren, Ashely Haynes (Adam Flory), Ameila Haynes, David MacKenzie Haynes (Rebecca Cohen).

Irene has lived her life in the community of Cruso since her father brought his family back to his childhood home around 1935.   Battling tuberculosis, Mr. Massie established the Massie Grocery in Cruso to provide for his family.  Soon, Irene began her working life as a very young businesswoman helping to run the family grocery.

Irene and Bill married in 1948 after Bill returned from military service.  They raised their two sons in the home they built at 9502 Cruso Road.

In 1972, as their youngest son was finishing high school and preparing to go to college, Irene launched her next career as a nurse earning her LPN at Haywood Tech. She worked for 17 years at Haywood County Hospital. She retired in 1989 to care for Bill as he battled lung cancer.

After Bill’s passing in 1990, Irene began her final career as a world traveler.  During her travels she visited every State in the Union and every Continent on the planet except Antarctica. Irene spent her life caring for family and her community. Irene traveled extensively well into her late 80’s. As Irene traveled our country and the globe, visiting central Africa, India, Russia, the Middle East, Egypt, China, Japan, Hong Kong, and South America she learned that all over the world people worked, just like she had, to care for their own families and their own communities.  She witnessed, firsthand, how education made the difference between communities suffering in poverty and communities that prospered.

In that spirit and in lieu of flowers, Irene’s family asks that you consider gifts to support education in Haywood County through Haywood Community College (formerly Haywood Tech). through their website at www.haywood.edu/foundation/donate-to-the-foundation or to support of the Cruso community in recovery from the recent floods by making donation to the Cruso United Methodist Church designating your donation as “flood relief”.

Irene’s family wishes to express deep appreciation for the exceptional care by the loving staff at Silver Bluff.

A funeral service will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 23, 2021, in the Chapel of Wells Funeral Home of Canton, 3715 Asheville Highway with Pastor Peter Constantian officiating.  Interment will follow at Bethel Community Cemetery.  The family will receive friends from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. The family requests that all Covid-19 safety precautions are followed.

The care of Mrs. Haynes has been entrusted to Wells Funeral Home of Canton.