42-year-old former news anchor become ill on vacation in SWFL; dies in Naples
A former anchor at an NBC station in Illinois died this past week in Naples while on vacation with her family, according to news reports.
Lesley Swick Van Ness, 42, was an anchor for WGEM-TV in Quincy, Illinois for many years before becoming an executive for its corporate parent, Gray Television. She died on April 10.
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“It is with a very heavy heart that we share some devastating news with you,” Jennifer Dale, the vice president of recruiting at Gray Television, said in a statement that was posted on a West Illinois news site.
Van Ness became ill while vacationing in Southwest Florida with her husband, Thomas Van Ness, and their two young sons. She was hospitalized. No cause of death was released.
“Lesley and her husband Tom have two precious young boys,” the statement read. “Please keep all of them in your prayers. We will keep everyone posted on arrangements.”
Van Ness’ colleagues remembered her as a force to be reckoned with.
”She was a powerful personality,” Matt Schmidt, an anchor at WGEM from 2007 until 2014, told the news station.
“She could walk into the newsroom and instantly take over. She just had a commanding presence about her,” he said.
“She wasn’t afraid to do the dirty work and wasn’t afraid to work the extra hour, especially if it was something that was really impacting the community,” said WGEM meteorologist Brian Inman.
Van Ness, a graduate of Illinois State University, began her career as a reporter at WGEM, the NBC local affiliate in Quincy, Ill., in 2003, according to her LinkedIn page.
In 2006, she transitioned to a weekend anchor position.
Two years later, she was anchoring the weekday editions of the evening and late-night newscasts.
She spent 13-plus years on air for the station before switching careers in 2021 after Gray Television acquired Quincy Media.
She was asked to develop the recruitment division for Gray and served as its first director of talent acquisition, according to her obituary.
Van Ness was born in 1980 in Macomb, Illinois and graduated from Hamilton High School.
She graduated from Illinois State College in 2003 with a bachelor of science degree and was a member of the ISU Department of Communications TV-10 news team.
Van Ness’ funeral will take place at St. John’s Anglican Parish in Quincy at 10 a.m. Monday.
