Obituary of Grace E. Turner

Grace Turner Graveside services for Grace Ethel Turner of Washington, MO, formerly of Elsberry, MO, will be held at 11:00 a.m. Thursday, June 3, 2010 at Elsberry City Cemetery. Rev. Jim Daniels of St. Charles, MO will officiate. Mrs. Turner, 99, passed away late Sunday evening, May 30, 2010 at St. John's Mercy Hospital in Washington, MO. Born May 17, 1911 in the Apex area near Elsberry, she was the daughter of Stephen A. Douglas and Mary Ella Gray Waggoner. Raised in the Elsberry community, she was a 1929 graduate of Elsberry High School. At the age of 18, she started teaching in the one-room school at Star Hope. In 1938 she became an elementary teacher in the Winfield School District. She was united in marriage on December 23, 1938 in Bowling Green, MO to Delphine Delmas Turner. This union was blessed with two children: Karen Jeanne and James Delmas. She earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Education in 1960 from Washington University in St. Louis, MO. She taught in the Elsberry School District from 1955 until 1968; and at the Forest Park Elementary in the Fort Zumwalt School District from 1968 until she retired in 1971. She was a long-time member of the Elsberry First Baptist Church, where she served as a Sunday School Teacher and as a Trustee for many years. She was also a member of the ABC Club in Elsberry and the Retired Teachers' Association. Mrs. Turner moved to Washington, MO in 1997 to be near her son. She was preceded in death by her parents, Stephen and Mary Ella Waggoner; four brothers: Bower Waggoner, Charles Waggoner, Clement Waggoner and Marvin Waggoner; two sisters: Zelma Gilliland and Juanita Gladney; and her beloved husband of 42 years, Delmas Turner who died February 17, 1981. Survivors include one daughter, Karen Jones and her husband, Leon, of O'Fallon, MO; one son, Dr. Jim Turner and his wife, Michelle, of Washington; five grandchildren; Natalie Jones, Stephanie Engelmeyer, and Clayton, Lucas and Elizabeth Grace Turner; and one great-grandchild on the way. She also leaves several in-laws, nieces, nephews, other relatives and many friends. Visitation will be held from 4:00 - 7:00 p.m. Wednesday, June 2, 2010 at Carter-Ricks Funeral Home in Elsberry. Memorials may be made to Elsberry First Baptist Church in care of Carter-Ricks Funeral Home, 107 South Fifth Street, Elsberry, MO 63343. Online condolences may be made at www.carterricksfuneralhome.com.