Verna Lorraine Lund Turner's Obituary
Verna Lorraine Lund Turner, 88, of Pitkin, LA, passed from this life on Monday, September 12, 2011, at her residence. Funeral Service will be held on Thursday, September 15, 2011, at 10 AM, at Palestine Baptist Church in Grant, LA. Officiating will be Rev. Dore' Langley and Rev. Hardy Estes. Burial will follow at Palestine Cemetery, under the direction of Labby Memorial Funeral Home in DeRidder, LA. Visitation will begin on Wednesday, September 14, 2011, from 4pm until 9 PM at the funeral home.
Verna Lorraine Lund Turner was born September 16, 1922, in Arlington, Nebraska, to Leonard and Kathryn (Gehrk) Lund. Her family moved to Houston, TX when she was two years old. She graduated from John H. Reagan High School in 1940. Her family then moved to Lake Charles, LA where she attended Vincent Business College. After business school, she was employed by Matheson Alkali Works until 1944. In April 1944, Verna enlisted in the U.S. Navy Waves and received training at the Naval Training Station in Cedar Falls, Iowa and Bronx, New York. Upon completion of training, she was stationed at the Naval Air Station in New Orleans, LA. She was honorably discharged on June 1946 with the rank of Yeoman Second Class. After her service in the Navy Waves, Verna moved back to Lake Charles and was employed by Southern Pacific Railroad as Secretary. In 1947, she married Edric Turner and they moved to Westlake, LA. They were members of First Baptist Church in Westlake where she was a Sunday School Teacher, Girl's Auxiliary Leader and an active member of the Women's Missionary Union. In 1996, she and Edric moved to his birthplace in Grant, LA, where they are members of Palestine Baptist Church. Because of her service to our country, Verna is a registered member of the Women in Military Service for American Memorial Foundation, Inc. in Washington, DC. She was placed on the foundation's Historic Roll of Honor. Her name and service is also inscribed on the Houston Height's WWII Memorial Plaza and Freedom Walk in Houston, TX. This memorial plaza commemorates all veterans from the Second World War who lived in the Houston Heights area and are alumni of John H. Reagan High School.
She was preceded in death by her parents, brother, Harold Lund and sister, Anita Hahn. She is survived by her devoted husband of 64 years, Edric Turner of Grant, LA; her daughter, Jane Manino and husband Billy; two sons, Loren Turner and wife Janet and Alan Turner and wife Mary, all of Westlake, LA; five grandchildren, four great grandchildren and three nieces. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to tiie Louisiana Baptist Children's Home in Monroe, LA or to the Palestine Baptist Church Building Fund in Grant, LA.
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