Ann Grace Yee

Ann Grace Yee, a resident of Brookline and Sharon passed away at Massachusetts General Hospital on Sunday, December 14, 2025, at age 90.

Ann was born in Boston, Massachusetts on January 13, 1935, one of nine children of the late Thomas Yee and Gee Shee Yee. Ann was raised in Boston's Chinatown neighborhood before moving to New London, Connecticut, where she graduated from high school at the Williams Memorial Institute (renamed The Williams School) in 1952. Ann received her undergraduate degree in Science/Biology from the University of Chicago in 1958. After graduating from college, Ann moved to Germany and then to Sweden in 1962, where she spent several years working in various labs and immersing herself in the culture and life there. While residing in Sweden, Ann established lifelong friendships and frequently returned to the place she considered her second home. After returning to the United States, Ann earned her PhD in Anatomy from Harvard University in 1973. While working on her PhD, Ann met Torsten Wiesel to whom she was married from 1973 through 1979. Ann worked at Harvard Medical School as an electron microscopist, conducting scientific research and publishing more than 24 scientific articles, from 1973-1983 and again from 1987-1997. Ann also later taught histology to medical students at Tufts University and UMass Medical Center. She concluded her career teaching pre-med students at Boston College.

Ann enjoyed travel, gardening, and spending time with family and friends. She took great pleasure in frequently hosting family Christmas, Thanksgiving and Chinese New Year celebrations. Ann also dedicated herself to chronicling the Yee family history along with her siblings, which culminated with a trip to China in 2019 where she found relatives and reestablished lost family connections. She will be remembered as a lifelong learner with a sharp intellect. Ann leaves behind a legacy of curiosity and dedication to science that will inspire family, friends, and colleagues for generations to come.

Ann was the loving mother of Sara (Wiesel) Cullen and her husband Brendan of Sharon, MA. Ann is survived by her sister May "Lil" Lee of Honolulu, HI, brother David Yee of Wichita, KS, and brother Roy Lee of North Andover, MA. Ann was preceded in death by her siblings, the late Jessie Toong, Thomas Yee, Rose Wong, William Yee, and Bernard Ginsburg Yee. Ann was the proud grandmother of Owen, Sean, and Michael Cullen of Sharon, MA, who brought much joy to her life. Ann is also survived by many cherished nieces, nephews, grandnieces, grandnephews and close friends.

A celebration of Ann's life will be held at the Lehman Reen & McNamara Funeral Home located at 63 Chestnut Hill Ave., Brighton, MA 02135 on Saturday, January 10, 2026 with visitation from 11-2 PM and service at 2 PM. The family invites all who knew her to attend and share their favorite memories. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Ann's memory to the ALS Therapy Development Institute (https://www.als.net/endals2025/) or to Compassionate Care ALS (https://ccals.org/donate/?donateto=14338).