Evelyn Bowe Turner, 90, of Roanoke, Va., passed away peacefully Friday, August 2, 2019. Evelyn lived most of her life in Salem, VA and was a loved member of Washington Heights Grace Brethren Church and retired as a Nursing Assistant at the Salem Veterans Affairs Medical Center where she excelled at her ability and desire to take care of our Veterans. She became “famous” among her patients and staff alike because of her care, compassion, and the way she was able to communicate with everyone she came into contact with, including her co-workers. She was featured in the 75th Anniversary video of the Salem VAMC called “I Commend Them To Your Care” which was the final line in the speech given by President Franklin Roosevelt at the dedication in 1934 when Evelyn was 6 years old and stood along the road waving a small American flag when his motorcade passed through Roanoke on the way to the Salem VA Medical Center. She was also a compassionate, dedicated, and extremely supportive Mother to three children where she instilled a definite sense of self-confidence, courage, and responsibility among those three kids. Her trusting nature, sense of humor, and love of all people that she met and worked with became her “calling card” that she was known for. She was truly the personification of unconditional love. Her smile, laughter, and twinkling blue eyes was always an endearing quality that helped forge lifelong friendships among everyone she met. Her loss is sad but, the time we were given with her was a wonderful blessing. She was preceded in death by her parents, George Washington and Wilma Sprinkle Bowe, husband, Kenneth Turner of Clearfield, PA, sister June Bowe Arthur, and brother George Forrest (Frosty) Bowe.
Survivors include her daughters, Sherry Ratzlaff and husband, Allen of Shelton, WA, and Sandy Kelley and husband, Sean of Bent Mountain, VA; one son, Tracy Turner of Hardy, VA; and one granddaughter, Chelsea Ratzlaff.
The family will receive friends from 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. & 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. on Friday, August 9, 2019, at the John M. Oakey & Son Funeral Home in Salem, VA.
A graveside service to commemorate her life will be conducted at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, August 10, 2019, at the Fair View Cemetery in Roanoke, VA. Friends that wish to attend the graveside service are asked to meet at the funeral home by 10:00 a.m. to visit with the family and adjourn to the cemetery.
In lieu of flowers the family asks that memorial contributions be made in Evelyn’s honor to the Roanoke Valley SPCA: rvspca.org/donate-now/ or to the Wounded Warrior Project: support.woundedwarriorproject.org.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.johnmoakey.com.