Anne Marie Quarles

Anne Marie Quarles passed away peacefully on April 20, 2025, in Sarasota, FL, after a courageous battle with cancer and Parkinson’s disease. Born August 9, 1940, in Baltimore, Maryland, Anne was the only child of Carmen Windsor and Sherwood Graham Quarles.

Anne's profound intelligence and passion for learning shaped a distinguished academic journey, graduating from Catonsville High School and earning BA and MA degrees from Stetson University, where she excelled nationally in oratory and debate.

Anne devoted her life to teaching English, touching countless lives in Florida, New Hampshire, and New York. Her unwavering belief in each student's potential nurtured not only academic excellence but self-confidence and lifelong inspiration. At Gibbs High School, her extraordinary leadership guided the girls' varsity basketball team to a memorable state championship in 1986, named "Team of the Decade" by the St. Petersburg Times.

Beyond education, Anne was a respected motivational speaker, leadership coach, and author of influential books, Classroom Clout and Entitled?, deeply committed to empowering others through beauty, truth, and competition.

Anne Marie's boundless warmth, wisdom, and generosity made her a beloved teacher, mentor, friend, and steadfast pillar of strength. Her spirit lives on through her devoted wife, Trudi Williams; daughter, Brooke Hughes; son, Hunter Hughes; and grandsons, Liam and Nathan.

A memorial mass celebrating Anne's remarkable life will be held at St. Boniface Episcopal Church, Sarasota, FL, on May 22, 2025, at 11:00 am. In lieu of flowers, donations honoring Anne Marie may be made to the Neuro Challenge Foundation for Parkinson’s Disease, continuing her legacy of meaningful impact.