William Richard Turner

Dick Turner, age 87, son of William Walker Turner and Mabeth Carson Turner, passed away on the 9th of June 2024 at Providence Village in Woodway, Texas. Services and visitation will be at a date to be determined.

Dick grew up in Upper Darby, PA and graduated from Upper Darby High School in Drexel Hill, PA. He graduated from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and Science in 1958 with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry. After graduating, he met Eileen Blood on a blind date, and they married on the 18th of June 1960 in Pleasantville, NJ. Dick earned his PhD in analytical chemistry from the University of Connecticut in 1963 and was a National Science Foundation Cooperative Graduate Fellow. Next, he was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Michigan. Dick joined the research team of ICI America, later AstraZeneca, in Wilmington, DE and retired in 1991 after 26 years of service.

Dick enjoyed traveling worldwide with his wife Eileen and providing a loving home for his family. Dick enriched his children’s lives by introducing them to the arts and sciences, including music, literature, and the visual arts. His appreciation of music was evident in his concert attendance of a wide variety of genres; he used his vocal talent through regular performance in many choral and singing groups in Delaware, Pennsylvania and Texas for the benefit of those in his local community. He taught his children to appreciate all kinds of music by playing music at home and fostered appreciation of reading and literature by providing countless books at home.

Dick also enjoyed and excelled at writing and had numerous published hymns, meditations, and stories. His mastery and use of poetic language touched many with the ability to articulate eloquently of the Lord’s creation and blessings. He contributed to the Waco Tribune as a guest columnist, writing many articles that were regularly published over the last decade. As a faithful servant of Christ, he generously gave of his talents including volunteering as a hospice worker at Delaware Hospice and faithfully supporting his local church with his time and attendance. Dick was a long time Methodist and most recently was an active member of First Presbyterian Church in Waco, TX.

Dick was preceded in death by his parents, William and Mabeth Turner of Wawa, PA, sister, Joan Derr of Chico, CA, and wife of 62 years, Eileen B. Turner.

Dick’s survivors include his three children, Anne Lornson of Waco, TX, Donald Turner and wife, Judy Turner of Kansas City, MO, and Katherine O’Donnell and husband, Joseph O’Donnell of China Spring, TX; sister Ruth Anderson of Atlanta, GA; brother-in-law, David G. Blood of Mays Landing, NJ; his granddaughter, Elizabeth Anne and six great-grandchildren. Most recently, the family welcomed a grandson, Ryan Tosatto, Judy’s son and Don’s stepson, and Ryan’s son into the family upon their marriage.

The family wishes to express their deepest gratitude to the staff at St. Catherine’s for their diligent care of Dick Turner and their loving support of the family over the most recent months. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to hospice care or to support the arts in your community.

The family invites you to leave a message or memory on our “Tribute Wall” at www.WHBfamily.com