Helen Doris Turner's Obituary
Mother Helen Doris (Williams) Turner passed away on November 1, 2025 in Mesquite, Texas. The seventh of sixteen children, Mother Turner was born on September 30, 1932, in Newport News, Virginia to Bishop Dempsey Lawrence Williams and Cora (McCollough) Williams. In 1933, the family moved to Norfolk, Virginia where her father pastored the historic Mason Memorial Church of God in Christ.
At an early age, Mother Turner learned and embraced the values of holiness, praise and worship, church work, music, and education. Her parents had a great influence on her life, and they underscored the importance of Bible study, memorizing and quoting scripture, singing in the choir, and serving and loving others. Mother Turner and her sisters often talked fondly of their experiences in the Sunshine Band, Purity Class, and Young People Willing Workers (YPWW).
After attending Booker T. Washington High School and Virginia State College (Norfolk State), Mother Turner moved to Brooklyn, New York where she lived with her father’s sisters, Aunt Sweetie Little and Aunt Pauline Clemmons. While in New York, Mother Turner attended and graduated from beauty school and worked as a beautician for a couple of years. She then went on to work for Abraham & Strauss and B. Altman & Co., department stores in Manhattan, where she did bookkeeping and accounting work.
Mother Turner met and eventually married Marvin Turner in 1961, and to this union were born three sons, David, Derek, and Michael. A devoted Pastor’s wife and loving mother, Mother Turner created a nurturing environment that embodied love, Christian principles, and encouragement. Despite her very quiet nature, Mother Turner was a beautiful picture of wisdom, joy, peace, and humility. She loved reading her bible, completing crossword puzzles, and singing hymns and Christian songs around the house. She was a beautiful spirit who demonstrated godly love to anyone she met. She will be greatly missed.
Mother Turner comes from a large godly family and was preceded in death by her husband of forty-six years, Elder Marvin Turner, her parents, Bishop D.L. Williams and Cora McCullough, and her siblings: Leroy, Dempsey, Lenora, Jessie, Evelyn, Robert, William, Sarah, Gloria, Charles, David, and Samuel. Of the sixteen siblings, there are two remaining to cherish her memory: Ruth Williams and Joseph Williams (Brenda).
In addition to the church families of Mason Memorial Church of God in Christ, the First Church of God in Christ, and The Living Gospel Church – Mesquite, she also leaves to cherish her memory her sons David (Sherri), Derek, and Michael (Janee), her grandchildren: Michael (a.k.a. Cheslie), Dashawn, Maniah, Mikie, Jadyn, Shayla, Mikayla, and Michael Jr., great grandchildren: Summer, Jadiar, Halo, and Jah’rya, and a host of relatives and friends.
The visitation will be held on Friday, November 14, 2025 from 10:00 to 11:00am at The Living Gospel Church, where the funeral service will follow at 11:00am. Burial will take place in Norfolk, Virginia.
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