General Hospital Star Kelly Thiebaud Honors Her Character By Raising Funds For A Deadly Disease
Dr. Britt Westbourne (Kelly Thiebaud) on "General Hospital" came to town in 2012 and caused a lot of mayhem in Port Charles. This comes as no surprise considering her parents are the late super villain Cesar Faison (Anders Hove) and reformed villain Liesel Obrecht (Kathleen Gati), per Soaps She Knows.
Britt cleaned up her act becoming a respectable citizen. However, when bad guys targeted Britt, mob enforcer Jason Morgan (Steve Burton) — who was on the run from the law — realized she was in danger, rescued her, and they fled. As Geeks reported, the two had been flirting off and on, and while they were escaping the authorities romance blossomed. Britt fell so head over heels for the always calm assassin that she confided in him her concerns about possibly having Huntington's disease, thanks to her dad's genes. According to Celebrating the Soaps, Jason convinced her to get tested, so she went to a clinic and learned the harsh truth — that she carries the markers for Huntington's disease. After attempting to rescue Liesel in Greece, Jason was caught in a cave-in and presumed dead. Britt has since picked up the pieces of her life, trying to move on.
Thiebaud herself is moving on, leaving "GH" for the show "Station 19," but the actress continues to make a difference in the real world by participating in fundraisers that are close to her and her "GH" character.
Kelly Thiebaud gets personally involved in a serious health matter
"General Hospital" star Kelly Thiebaud recently participated in a fundraiser with the Huntington's Disease Society of America and posted the results on Instagram, stating, "We raised 200k for Huntington's disease! Thank you so much to @hdsanational for inviting me. It was very meaningful for me to be there and to see the support this organization and the people involved have towards not only finding a cure for HD, but supporting the families that are impacted by this disease." She went on to explain that her "GH" character has Huntington's, writing, "I never knew about this disease until I was given this storyline and I hold it very tightly to my heart."
Many fans offered their love and congratulations in the comments. A viewer wrote a heartfelt response that reflected almost all of them saying, "You've done an incredible job playing this storyline on GH...It's brought great light to this disease...We are going to miss you on GH but hope to follow you on your new journey!!" Another viewer wrote, "Thank you for bringing awareness." A fan whose family has been affected by Huntington's replied, "Thank you for your help to find a cure from this horrible disease!"
Playing a character with Huntington's disease has clearly moved Thiebaud to be proactive in raising awareness and funds to find a cure.