Marilyn Joan (Collins) Turner, 82, of Dubuque died Monday, November 28, 2016, with her two daughters holding her hands. Visitation will be from 4 to 7 pm Friday at the Egelhof, Siegert and Casper Westview Funeral Home and Crematory, 2659 Kennedy Road. Funeral service will be 10 a.m. Saturday at Lord of Life Lutheran Church.
Marilyn was born April 19, 1934 in Cleveland, Ohio, daughter of Max and Dorothy (Koch) Collins. She was the first in her family to go to college, graduating from the University of Toledo where she was a proud Chi Omega. She married Ronald Turner on December 29, 1956 in Toledo. They lived in Utah, Illinois, and Ohio, finally settling in Iowa. He preceded her in death on November 27, 2011.
She loved working in elementary schools and the kids and teachers loved her. As an active Lutheran all her life, the church was very important to Marilyn. She was an avid member of TTT, enjoying many friendships.
Marilyn always said she was “blessed”, but in truth, it is we who were blessed by her presence. A wonderful wife, mother, grandmother and friend, Marilyn was the nicest, most positive person you could ever meet. She was amazed that she made it to 82, and treasured every minute she had.
As material things were never important to her; Marilyn enjoyed playing bridge and walking, but mostly being with family and friends. She loved nothing more than supporting her children and grandchildren, attending and helping out at many sporting and performing events. You could often find her curled up on the floor playing all kinds of games with her grandchildren.
She was an accomplished knitter and seamstress, knitting many prayer shawls for those in need. She traveled and golfed a lot with her late husband, Ron, but enjoyed the time with him more than the travel and golf.
Marilyn is survived by two daughters, Janet (TJ) Faley of Dubuque and Nancy (Michael) Jung of Belmont, Calif., as well as a son David Turner of Alaska. She had seven grandsons who were the lights of her life; Duke and Nickolas Faley; Jason, Maxwell and Samuel Jung; and Christian and Zachary Turner.
She was also preceded in death by her parents; and a brother, John “Jack” Collins.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Hospice of Dubuque, the Dubuque TTT Chapter or the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
For further information please visit www.egelhofsiegertcasper.com.
The family would like to thank Dr. Christian Schultheis and staff, Dr. Mark Moore and staff, and the nurses and staff at Hospice of Dubuque for their excellent care which allowed Marilyn to enjoy life as long as possible.