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WQAD says goodbye to a community leader, friend

Her skills allowed her to unite our community for a great cause.
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This morning we take a moment to remember a very important person in the Quad City community: Thea Hansen-Bettis. For years, she was known for her work at TPQC (The Project of the Quad Cities). Her skills allowed her to unite our community for a great cause.

Her job became her life, spending years connecting people at risk of HIV-AIDS with testing and treatment and helping youth in the LGBTQ community understand that they are cared for and loved, even when suicide seemed like the only option.

She was skilled as a coordinator of the Quad City Red Ribbon Dinner, telling WQAD News 8 in 2016, “It’s a coming together of people from all walks of life, socioeconomic backgrounds who have been impacted or just care about people living with this disease.”

Last year, she reached out to WQAD News 8, asking if we would partner with TPQC in their efforts. We wholeheartedly said yes and helped her make this year's benefit the biggest ever. Many of us at WQAD formed friendships with Thea and will miss her so much.

As the community mourns the passing of Thea, we are thinking most of Thea's husband Chad, her family, and all of the Quad Citizens who loved her.

Visitation will be from 2-5 p.m., Saturday, at Esterdahl Mortuary & Crematory, Ltd., 6601-38th Avenue in Moline.
Funeral services will be held at 3:30 p.m. on Sunday September 23rd at Trinity Lutheran Church in Moline.

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