Thelma was born in Los Angeles, California to Ray and Thelma Quanstrom. When she was 10 her family moved to Pico, California. While living in Pico she met and married the love of her life Richard "Whitey" Tebeck. They were married for 67 years. After Richard was discharged from the Navy they moved to Oregon and later to Wallula and Burbank, Washington. Thelma was preceded in death by her parents, two brothers, her husband, many friends at church and a special great granddaughter, Kaitlyn Soden.

In 1951 Thelma accepted Jesus as her Lord and Saviour. She was very active in sharing his love and encouraging and praying for others.  She made sure her children were able to attend worship and Bible study. She especially liked attending the Northwest Baptist Conventions and meeting other Christians from all over the Northwest.

She enjoyed the outdoors, the ocean, mountains and hiking. She spent time with grandchildren taking them on special adventures, especially to feed the ducks at Pioneer Park in Walla Walla. She was an on the go person and could be seen walking around Burbank and on the track until her health no longer allowed her to do so. Mount Rainier was known as "Grandma's Mountain," and she considered herself to be a walking miracle after recovering from major heart surgery in 2009 - she was later awarded a special medal as a Bloomsday Race finisher in Spokane.

She leaves behind and will be missed by her daughters Thelma (Walt) Ritchie, Serena (Chuck) Soden, Susan (Dan) Shelton and her sons Ray (Beverly) Tebeck and Tom (Lisa) Tebeck. She was also blessed with many grandchildren, great grandchildren and two great great grandsons.

The family would like to thank Parkview Estates staff and caregivers for taking such good care of her during the last seven years of her life.

A celebration of life will be held at a later date to share and remember. Mom, we love you and miss you, but know Jesus answered your prayers to be with Him.