Obituary of Thelma Turner

Thelma (Gladson) Turner passed away Monday, March 31, 2014 at her home with family by her side. Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. on Saturday, April 5, 2014 at Collister Community Church, 4709 West State Street, Boise, Idaho. Thelma was born in Nampa, Idaho August 6, 1924 to Charley F. and Mary (Crandal) Gladson. This bubbly baby girl changed the lives of her parents and quiet older brother. She began and remained the apple of her father's eye and the pride and love of her mother. But the first few years she drove her older brother crazy with her non-stop chattering and wanting to be part of everything he did. For ten years he had no peace. She attended Kenwood, Roosevelt and Nampa High School, graduating in 1942. Growing up she was rarely seen without a gang of friends where she always was the center of attention. By high school she had developed into a shapely beauty who unfittingly was dubbed with the nickname "Pudge". Popular with everyone, she was voted Yell Duchess her junior year and Yell Queen her senior year. This was the beginning of her life long love for football. One evening in the Spring of 1942 she was at a dance in Nampa where she met the love of her life...Bob Turner. They fell in love that night and were married in May of 1944. This union lasted nearly 70 years until Bob's death in September 2013. After the war, Bob and Pudge made their home in Boise and in 1945 started their family together with the birth of their daughter Jan and in 1948 their son Jon was born. While the children were young, she was a stay-at-home mom but in 1953 she went to work for AAA (auto club) as a secretary, then Idaho Title, First American Title and Pioneer Title Co. as an escrow closing agent and retired in 1986. One of her favorite pastimes was dancing. She had developed a love for dancing in her childhood when she took tap, ballet and toe dancing lessons. She and friends danced through high school to Big Band Swing Music and she and Bob cut a mean jitterbug. Years later when Bob became a member of the El Korah Shrine she joined the Daughters of the Nile Dancers Unit. They performed all over Idaho, the United States and Canada. She loved the time she spent with the Dancers and the Shriners. This was a happy time in the lives and they made many lifetime friends. Neither Bob nor Pudge knew a stranger. Their house was a warm welcome to anyone who entered. They both had a great sense of humor and it was a delight to be around them. Bob and Pudge had two very special friends; Peter and Irene Valle. When the two couples got together, anything was possible. You could hear them laughing a block away. Pudge cherished Irene's friendship. Although she spent a full and active life, her family always came first. She always took an interest in their lives and activities. Her friends she loved dearly and always cheered for them or cried with them. Not one of their secrets she ever repeated and when she made a friend, she made a friend for life. She was preceded in death by her husband, Bob; her parents: Charley and Mary Gladson; her brother, Kenneth Gladson; a sister-in-law, Icel (Turner) Lippa; brother-in-law, Eugene Lippa; and a great granddaughter Marquel Evans; and many aunts, uncles, and cousins. She is survived by her two children: daughter, Jan (Rick) Evans; son, Jon (Davell) Turner; grandsons: Robert Evans, Shawn (Mel) Turner, Shane Turner, and Ryan (Pamela) Turner; and twelve great grandchildren; a special sister-in-law, Maureen Gladson; nieces, Sheri Hurd (Doug), and Gayle Batterton (Rick); nephews, Eugene Lippa Jr., and Scott (Sherry) Gladson. The Lord was calling and it was her time to go, but she hesitated. She said to her daughter, "I am ready to go, but I don't want to leave you". That's the way she lived her life...a thought for everyone but herself. The family wishes to thank Michelle, Bobby, Sherry and Chaplain Bruce of Home Health Hospice. And we are eternally grateful to Bob and Pudge's grandson Bobby and their great grandson Kristian for their loving kindness and 24 hour a day care for both Bob and Pudge during the last year. Memories and condolences may be shared with the family on Thelma's memorial webpage at www.summersfuneral.com.