Breer, Barbara Joan (Borngesser) of Sherborn MA died on April 6th, 2025, after a long battle with cancer. Beloved wife of the late William Lewis Breer. Loving mother of Douglas Breer and his wife, Karen, of Freeport, ME; Timothy Breer and his wife, Patricia, of Sherborn, MA; and Rebecca Leonard and her husband, Michael, of Wayland, MA. Cherished grandmother of Aaron, Griffin, Mina, Hunter, Ben, Mallory, Lidy, Bryn, and Hazel. Also survived by her dear brother, Bert Borngesser, of Raleigh, NC; and many special nieces and nephews. Barbara, Barbie to her friends, grew up in Lexington, MA; graduated from Brown University in 1957 with a degree in International Relations. After graduation she worked as a systems engineer at IBM. During her first year at IBM, Barbie met her husband William (Bill) Breer at the Eliot Club for young people at First Parish in Cambridge. They married in 1959 and moved to Sherborn in 1961. Barbie left IBM to do computer programming from home until her second child was born.
Barbie loved being at home, able to respond as a volunteer when there was a need in town, in her church, or when her children’s activities required adult support. She was a Girl Scout leader as well as a Cub Scout Den Mother. She was treasurer of the DS ski team in the Buddy Werner League for five years when her children were involved in ski racing. In 1964 Barbie helped start a chapter of the League of Women Voters in Sherborn, serving for two and a half years as provisional leader and then president. She served on an early Master Plan Committee for the town and was treasurer of the Elder Housing Committee for 15 years. She was also a regular worker at the polls and Town Meetings.
Barbie found her spiritual home in Sherborn’s Unitarian Universalist Area church in the 60’s. She was an effective contributor to programs such as Family Promise, which provided assistance to homeless families and 1500 Acts to End Hunger, which benefited the emergency food pantry, A Place to Turn. She also served as the treasurer of the Service and Justice Ministries Committee and the Women’s Alliance for many years.
Singing was one of Barbie’s great joys. She became a member of her church choir when she was only in fourth grade and continued to sing in her church choir until last year. She was a founding member of the Music Makers, a long-time performing group of women singers. Barbie was also an avid tennis player and belonged to a couple of groups that played regularly for many years.
Bill was the love of Barbie’s life. They were married for 52 years before Bill passed away in 2011. They enjoyed many years together, camping, skiing, hiking, traveling and of course spending time with their children and grandchildren. She will be greatly missed by all those that knew and loved her.
A memorial service will be held at 12 pm on Saturday, June 21st at the Unitarian Universalist Area Church at First Parish in Sherborn with lunch to follow. Gifts in Barbie’s memory may be made to UUAC in Sherborn, 11 Washington St., PO Box 158, Sherborn, MA 01770.