Joyce M. Greene died peacefully on Dec. 25 in Santa Barbara, Calif. She was 95.

She lived for many years in Chappaqua, N.Y., Ludlow, Vt., Fort Lauderdale, Fla. and the Vineyard. For decades, she summered on her sailboat in different Vineyard harbors.

In 1927, Joyce was born in Brooklyn, N.Y. to Jack and Minnie Teck. Her mother died when she was nine. With her stepmother Sue, the family moved around during the Great Depression, doing civil construction. They settled in Dryden, N.Y. where Joyce was valedictorian of her high school class.

She majored in biochemistry at Cornell University and graduated in 1949. She married Herbert Meller in 1948. She subsequently married Leonard Greene in 1967. She and Leonard owned Edgartown Marine for approximately 25 years.

She was a strong believer in the power of a good education. She constantly read as a child and always had a book with her. She supported many schools and students. For 10 years, she was a trustee and chairman of the Hudson River Museum, supporting their work of outreach and education in Westchester county, N.Y. Her commitment resulted in the creation of the Joyce Greene Education Center at the museum. After moving to California in her late 80s, she donated to the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History.

Joyce was a hardworking and generous member of many community organizations. Starting in the 1950s she led the local League of Women Voters, developed an art fair as a fundraiser for the Parent Teacher Association and helped purchase and decorate Temple Beth El in Chappaqua, N.Y.

Always on the go; first on the slope, first in the race. She was always the captain of the ship, whether the ship was her Rhodes 19 Follow Me, the sailing yacht Windshear or a Beechcraft King Air. She was a jet-rated pilot and helped set distance records in that aircraft. She was also the first female commodore of the Beach Point Yacht Club in Mamaroneck, N.Y.

She loved sailing, skiing, tennis and paddle tennis, and travel in any form. At 85, she embarked on a voyage around the world with Semester at Sea, where she was a lifelong learner, and made friends with many college students and Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

She had many friends and a large family. She was generous, patient and looked for ways to help. She found comfort in big adventures and small kindnesses.

Joyce is survived by four children, Jeff Meller, William Meller and his wife Amanda, Gary Meller and his wife Maureen, and Amy Meller, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and eight stepchildren.