Stanley "Stan" Francis Leach

Stanley Francis Leach, 90, of Moline, IL, passed away on February 19, 2025, at Friendship Manor in Rock Island. Stan was born in Moline on January 19, 1935, the son of Francis and Wilda Leach.

Stan graduated from Moline High School in 1953 before earning a Bachelor of Arts from Western Illinois University and a Master’s degree from Illinois State University. He also served in the Air National Guard.

In 1961, Stan married Wilma “Willie” Hughes in Washington, IA.

Stan was an avid fisherman and hunter, fishing many of the lakes in Canada for 65 years. He loved traveling with his wife, Willie, and working on home improvement projects. Stan and Willie were long-time members of the First Congregational Church in Moline.

Stan Leach was a prominent contributor to the Quad City area for over 60 years. After graduating from college, Leach returned to his high school alma mater as an art teacher, where he spent his career inspiring generations of MHS students. His dedication to the youth extends beyond his teaching career, exhibited in his volunteerism with the Illinois Youth Commission in the late sixties, his pioneering efforts to start the Moline Optimists Youth Flag Football Program in 1967, his co-founding of the Moline Young Life program in the seventies, his work with the Moline Park Board in the eighties, and his fundraising endeavors with Bob Tunberg, for a new gymnasium at Arrowhead Ranch in 1991. Leach also served as a board member for the Niabi Zoological Society, Rock Island County Area Projects, Rock Island Animal Shelter, Moline Rotary, Viva Quad Cities, and the QC and John Deere Golf Classics for over 50 years. He was inducted into the Moline High School Hall of Honor in 2010.

In addition to promoting youth and philanthropic organizations of the Quad Cities, Stan Leach has devoted much time and effort to local politics and planning. He has served on the US League of Cities, the Illinois Municipal League, the Bi-State Planning Commission, and the I-74 Interstate Commission Board and acted as a Moline Second-Alarmer for twenty years. Leach's public offices include a Moline Township Trustee (1980-1985), Moline Alderman Fifth Ward (1985-1990), and Moline Alderman Fourth Ward (1991-1993). His political and public service career culminated in his role as the city's first Mayor of Moline to be elected to three consecutive terms (1993-2005).

Stan is survived by his wife, Willie, son Jon and two precious grandchildren, Addison Irene and Bradyn Stanley, along with a sister, Barbara Fulton and many nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents and sisters, Nancy Klyber, Martha Billedo, and Mary Hanson.

Memorials may be made to Friends of the Moline Library and Crime Stoppers of the Quad Cities.

The family extends their heartfelt gratitude to Friendship Manor and Heartland Hospice Care for their exceptional care and support of Stan.

There will be no visitation, and a private graveside service and burial will take place at the Rock Island National Cemetery.

Family and friends are invited to share memories and express condolences to the family on Stan's Memory Wall at wendtfuneralhome.com.