Teresa "Terri" Beers Mesich, 73, of Rock Island, died unexpectedly on Friday, December 15, 2023, at the University of Wisconsin Hospital in Madison. Terri endured 26 months of cancer treatment with grace, strength, humor, and optimism. She continued to see friends and family, take care of everyone in her life, play tennis, exercise, sing, hum and laugh until her last day.

A visitation will be held at Wheelan-Pressly Funeral Home and Crematory, Rock Island from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm on Saturday, January 6, 2024 followed by a funeral service at noon. A private burial will be conducted at the Coal Valley Cemetery. There will be a luncheon at Riverfront Grille, Rock Island following the service.

Teresa graduated from Rockford West High School in 1968 and from the University of Illinois in 1972.  Terri met her husband Jim when they both worked in the dining hall. She made salads while he supervised the cooks.  She knew she had found the one after Jim splurged for all-you-can-eat pancakes on their first date. They have been inseparable for the past 52 years.

Terri was an exemplary preschool teacher while her own daughters were young. She was always engaged in local affairs and was even named to the Community Caring Conference Hall of Fame. She was one of the founders of Citizens for Responsible Gun Laws and an active member of AAUW. She loved politics, loved to read and discuss the great issues, loved movies, and loved the beach in Florida.

Art was her passion and her profession, and she won numerous awards for her work. Halfway through her cancer treatment, she decided to auction her remaining artworks and raised $9,000 for charities in Rock Island. She was a true renaissance woman with an unbridled zest for life. She was an avid birder, played with the Riverside Tennis Group, Cape Canaveral Tennis Group, and her beloved Flamingas Tennis Group. She loved to garden both vegetables and flowers. She played golf but enjoyed watching the wildlife more than playing the game. Terri was a naturalist and knew everything about birds, plants, and wild animals. She was very interested in protecting and preserving the natural world.

Terri was a mermaid. I'm serious; there's a certificate to prove it. She loved the sea and swimming. In 2013 she attended professional mermaid school at the Weeki Wachi Springs, was given a beautiful tail, and swam underwater in a natural spring. We have fantastic pictures. Terri was the best mermaid, as she was the best mother, the best wife, the best friend, the best artist, the best grandmother, and one of the smartest people you could ever meet.

She loved her friends, family, and daughters. She was proud of their professional achievements, but she was most proud of how they take care of their children and their partnerships with their husbands. She was thankful to have known and loved her four grandchildren and was always advocating for more outside time, less screen time.

Survivors include her loving husband of 52 years, Judge (RET) James Mesich; daughters and sons in law, Honorable Kathleen Mesich (Christopher Fiems), Anne Mesich (Carl Fuerst); grandchildren, Ethan Mesich- Fiems, Nathan Mesich-Fiems, Joseph Fuerst, Gianna Fuerst; siblings, Kathleen Hatfield, Ellen (Rudy) Gradishar and Kevin (Kim Ta) Beers.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Dr. Ray and Virginia Beers; brother, Ray "Chip" F. Beers, III and brothers in law: Joseph Hatfield, William Somora and Anthony Somora.

Memorials in Terri's name may be left to the Rock Island YWCA and Rock Island Girls Softball.

Online condolences may be left for the family at wheelanpressly.com.