Anna Mae Boothroyd

Anna Mae Freiesleben Near Boothroyd

(May 26, 1926 - April 19, 2026)

Anna Mae Freiesleben Near Boothroyd, 99, of West Bend, Wisconsin, passed away peacefully on April 19, 2026, at Kathy Hospice in West Bend. Throughout a long life dedicated to serving others, her gentle strength, resilience and unconditional love never wavered.

Born on May 26, 1926, in Baltimore, Maryland, to Arthur Gotfried Freiesleben and Esther Gertrude Grant, Anna Mae was raised in Milwaukee and earned a Masters in Social Work from the University of Wisconsin Madison. For over 20 years, she dedicated herself to providing individual, couple and family therapy as well as domestic and international adoption counseling for Family Services in Milwaukee, WI and Utica, NY.

Anna Mae married Donald Near in 1950 and they shared 55 wonderful years before his passing. In 2007, Anna Mae married Russell Boothroyd. They enjoyed 8 golden years together before his death in 2016. She was also pre-deceased by her brother, Kenneth (Rita) Freiesleben.

Anna Mae is survived by her five children with Donald; Patricia (Harry) Merrifield, Joanne (Alan) MacKenzie, Timothy (Diane) Near, David (Andrew) Near, and Jeffrey (Lynn) Near; fourteen grandchildren and twenty great grandchildren. She is also survived by Russ’ children Susan (Norman) Loomer and Barbara (Jeffry) Terry and his four grandchildren and five great grandchildren. Across three generations, she has been a constant inspiration and deeply loved matriarch.

After raising their family in New Hartford, NY, Don and Anna Mae retired first to Cape Cod, MA and, 18 years later, to West Bend, WI. In retirement, she continued her service to others as a volunteer for Lower Cape Outreach and by organizing care giver and bereavement support groups and as a volunteer chaplain for Cedar Community in West Bend, WI. Anna Mae was also an active lifelong member of the United Methodist Church.

A celebration of life service will be held at Prairie Home Cemetery in Waukesha, WI at 10:30am on May 29, 2026.

In lieu of flowers, donations to the Cedar Community Partners in Caring program in Anna Mae's honor are welcome.