Anne Marie Breslin, former Director of Birthright of Southern Maryland and a proud mother of eight, passed away Tuesday night, March 26, at the age of 85.

Wife of Leonardtown pharmacist Fred W. Breslin for 56 years, Anne loved children. She dedicated herself not only to her own large family, but to youngsters in the community as well.

In 1981, she began working as a volunteer at Father Andrew White School, tutoring students in reading. Anne was also a tireless defender of the unborn, and in the mid-1970s she began volunteering at Birthright, which provided practical assistance to pregnant women and teenagers in distress. Anne served as Birthright of Southern Maryland's director for nearly 10 years.

Anne Marie Stieffenhofer was born in Philadelphia on May 26, 1927, and she graduated from Little Flower Catholic High School in 1945.

She and Fred celebrated a large formal wedding at St. Veronica's Catholic Church in Philadelphia on Oct. 10, 1953. A doctor informed the young bride that she could not bear children. Anne proved him wrong eight times, giving birth to two children while living in Indian Head, Md., two in Bryans Road, Md., and four more after settling in Leonardtown in 1960, where Fred was a pharmacist at St. Mary's Pharmacy until 1991.

Anne was a devout Catholic and a strong supporter of the church. She was also a lover of music and theater: as a young woman in Philadelphia she enjoyed acting in school and community theater productions.

Though a stroke left her partially paralyzed for 16 years, Anne's unwavering faith, grace, and quick-witted humor guided her (and her family) through the toughest of times. She continued to attend concerts and take trips with her family, and she always took pleasure in reading, even going as far as trying out an electronic reader. She enjoyed visits from her family, especially her grandchildren, and was delighted by the birth of her great-granddaughter Leah Marie Scharmen, in April 2011.

Anne was preceded in death by her parents, her sister Marie Stieffenhofer, her daughter Katherine Easom in 1987, and her husband Fred in 2009.

She is survived by her brother Joseph Stieffenhofer and his wife Marion of Fairport, N.Y.; her sister Margaret and her husband Tony Glass of Harleysville, Pa.; her son Patrick Breslin and his wife Deborah of Pennington, N.J.; her son Michael Breslin and his wife Amy of Woodbine, Md.; her son Thomas Breslin of Leonardtown; her daughter Margaret and her husband Stan Dunn of Troy, N.Y.; her son William Breslin and his wife Kristen of California, Md.; her daughter Nancy and her husband Robin Paul of Leonardtown, Md.; her daughter Joanne and her husband Tom Jones of Leonardtown, Md.; her son-in-law James Easom of Albuquerque, N.M., her 13 grandchildren, 16 nieces and nephews, and her great-granddaughter Leah.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Wednesday, April 3, at 10:00 AM in St. Aloysius Catholic Church in Leonardtown with Fr. John Dakes officiating. Interment will follow in Queen of Peace Cemetery Helen, Md. The family will receive friends on Tuesday, April 2, from 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM in the Mattingley-Gardiner Funeral Home with prayers recited at 6:30 PM.

Arrangements provided by Mattingley-Gardiner Funeral Home.