Bettina Thomas
1965-03-02 2020-08-01
Obituary
Bettina Louise Koelzer, 55, passed away unexpectedly on Saturday, August 1, 2020.
As she drove from Iowa to her family’s cabin in North Carolina, she was tragically and instantly killed by a car that had lost control, crossed the median and struck her head on, just east of Knoxville Tennessee.
Our dear, sweet Bettina was extremely giving and generous. She was a devoted daughter and caregiver to her Mom and a loving wife to David, her husband of 31 years. She was a nourishing influence to her 3 sisters and 5 brothers, a caring aunt to her nieces, and a very dedicated and hard-working employee. Anyone who knew her was fortunate to experience her joy, strength and enthusiasm.
Bettina truly enjoyed baking, gardening, long bike rides with her husband, and spending time with her family. She always looked forward to her visits to the cabin that she, her siblings and mother built in North Carolina. Bettina would make the trip multiple times a year, and work remotely for up to a month at a time. She also took great delight in visiting family in Colorado and Florida, going to the beach and boogie-boarding in the ocean. She deeply loved her cats Precious, Natasha and Sebastian.
Bettina grew up in Ormond-by-the-Sea Florida. She spent her childhood years going to the beach with her siblings and sometimes getting way too much sun without sunscreen on! She spent her teenage years working at Publix, the local grocery store, and graduated from Seabreeze Senior High School in Daytona Beach Florida. After graduation, she attended Maharishi International University in Fairfield, Iowa, and upon graduating with a Computer Science degree, worked at numerous companies including Polestar Software, CER, Boss Logic, Media Station, Intermec and, lastly, Pearson in Iowa City, Iowa. On June 24, 1989, she married her best friend from college, and she and David built a happy life together.
She was preceded to heaven by her Mom, Vilma Jean Thomas.
Survivors include her husband David Koelzer of Marion Iowa; sisters: Melinda Thomas and Kit Healy of Fairfield Iowa, Pamela and Brad Thomas of Ormond-by-the-Sea Florida, Melissa and Ricardo Miranda of Superior Colorado; brothers: Bill Thomas of North Liberty Iowa, Joel Thomas of Port Orange Florida, Johnny Thomas and Guy Thomas of Ormond-by-the-Sea Florida; David Thomas of Iowa City Iowa; nieces: Sophia, Alina, and Olivia Miranda of Superior Colorado, Jade Thomas of Ocala Florida; nephew: Jeremy Thomas of Ormond Beach Florida; Aunt Betty Brodi and cousin Mark George Brodi of West Palm Beach Florida; Marina Moreno from Bogota Colombia (Ricardo Miranda’s mother), and David Koelzer’s many relatives…
Bettina’s family & friends love her immensely and miss her deeply.
Visitation (slide show & music) will be held on Saturday, August 22, 2020, 1:00pm-2:00pm Central Time. The Memorial Service will begin at 2:00PM Central Time. Both events will be held at the Cedar Memorial Park, Chapel of Memories, 4200 1st Ave NE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52402.
Due to the prevalence of covid-19, there will be limited seating available in the chapel. If you would like to attend (and have been symptom free for at least 14 days) please email david.koelzer@mchsi.com to ensure seats will be available. Also, we ask everyone to wear masks and practice physical distancing. Chapel seating will be spaced accordingly.
For those who cannot attend the service in person, we have arranged a LIVE video stream of the service. You will be able to connect with smartphone, iPad, or computer to: https://client.tribucast.com/tcid/43347841, on Saturday, August 22, 2020, starting at 1:45pm Central Time. The live-stream will start with a slide show of our favorite photos of Bettina and then at 2PM the service will begin.
Bettina Louise Koelzer, 55, passed away unexpectedly on Saturday, August 1, 2020.
As she drove from Iowa to her family’s cabin in North Carolina, she was tragically and instantly killed by a car that had lost control, crossed the median and struck her head on, just east of Knoxville Tennessee.
Our dear, sweet Bettina was extremely giving and generous. She was a devoted daughter and caregiver to her Mom and a loving wife to David, her husband of 31 years. She was a nourishing influence to her 3 sisters and 5 brothers, a caring aunt to her nieces, and a very dedicated and hard-working employee. Anyone who knew her was fortunate to experience her joy, strength and enthusiasm.
Bettina truly enjoyed baking, gardening, long bike rides with her husband, and spending time with her family. She always looked forward to her visits to the cabin that she, her siblings and mother built in North Carolina. Bettina would make the trip multiple times a year, and work remotely for up to a month at a time. She also took great delight in visiting family in Colorado and Florida, going to the beach and boogie-boarding in the ocean. She deeply loved her cats Precious, Natasha and Sebastian.
Bettina grew up in Ormond-by-the-Sea Florida. She spent her childhood years going to the beach with her siblings and sometimes getting way too much sun without sunscreen on! She spent her teenage years working at Publix, the local grocery store, and graduated from Seabreeze Senior High School in Daytona Beach Florida. After graduation, she attended Maharishi International University in Fairfield, Iowa, and upon graduating with a Computer Science degree, worked at numerous companies including Polestar Software, CER, Boss Logic, Media Station, Intermec and, lastly, Pearson in Iowa City, Iowa. On June 24, 1989, she married her best friend from college, and she and David built a happy life together.
She was preceded to heaven by her Mom, Vilma Jean Thomas.
Survivors include her husband David Koelzer of Marion Iowa; sisters: Melinda Thomas and Kit Healy of Fairfield Iowa, Pamela and Brad Thomas of Ormond-by-the-Sea Florida, Melissa and Ricardo Miranda of Superior Colorado; brothers: Bill Thomas of North Liberty Iowa, Joel Thomas of Port Orange Florida, Johnny Thomas and Guy Thomas of Ormond-by-the-Sea Florida; David Thomas of Iowa City Iowa; nieces: Sophia, Alina, and Olivia Miranda of Superior Colorado, Jade Thomas of Ocala Florida; nephew: Jeremy Thomas of Ormond Beach Florida; Aunt Betty Brodi and cousin Mark George Brodi of West Palm Beach Florida; Marina Moreno from Bogota Colombia (Ricardo Miranda’s mother), and David Koelzer’s many relatives…
Bettina’s family & friends love her immensely and miss her deeply.
Visitation (slide show & music) will be held on Saturday, August 22, 2020, 1:00pm-2:00pm Central Time. The Memorial Service will begin at 2:00PM Central Time. Both events will be held at the Cedar Memorial Park, Chapel of Memories, 4200 1st Ave NE, Cedar Rapids, IA 52402.
Due to the prevalence of covid-19, there will be limited seating available in the chapel. If you would like to attend (and have been symptom free for at least 14 days) please email david.koelzer@mchsi.com to ensure seats will be available. Also, we ask everyone to wear masks and practice physical distancing. Chapel seating will be spaced accordingly.
For those who cannot attend the service in person, we have arranged a LIVE video stream of the service. You will be able to connect with smartphone, iPad, or computer to: https://client.tribucast.com/tcid/43347841, on Saturday, August 22, 2020, starting at 1:45pm Central Time. The live-stream will start with a slide show of our favorite photos of Bettina and then at 2PM the service will begin.