Ian F. Turner 1941 - 2020
It is our sad duty to report that Ian F. Turner passed away on April 24, 2020, following a heart attack.
Ian volunteered with our program for 27 years and spent more than a decade as District Coordinator (DC). Ian retired as DC following the 2019 tax season, but remained active as a preparer and site manager in 2020. Below is Ian's obituary.
Ian volunteered with our program for 27 years and spent more than a decade as District Coordinator (DC). Ian retired as DC following the 2019 tax season, but remained active as a preparer and site manager in 2020. Below is Ian's obituary.
Ian F. Turner, age 79, of Dillsburg passed away Friday morning, April 24 2020 at Holy Spirit Hospital, Camp Hill, PA after suffering a heart attack.
Ian was born March 13 1941 in Scotland as his parents believed it was safer for their son to be born away from their home near Sheffield England during World War II. Ian returned to England at age 2 and lived surrounded by family until leaving home to study chemistry at University of Liverpool. In 1970, Ian moved to the US to marry Nancy Turner. They were married for 14 years; Nancy passed away from cancer in 1985.
Ian is survived by his only daughter, Cherilyn Turner Boller, and his son-in-law Timothy Boller, of Houston, TX.
Ian worked as a food scientist until his retirement.
He loved playing and watching soccer as well as watching Formula 1 racing, particularly with his son-in-law. Ian loved attending his current home church, Life in Christ Fellowship in Dillsburg, PA.
Services will be held remotely on Saturday, May 2, at 11 am eastern, hosted on Facebook Live, with his dear friend Reverend Stephen Spuler officiating.
The family intends to have a memorial service later in the year after social distancing restrictions are lifted. An announcement will be made at that time by Life in Christ Fellowship.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations in Ian's name be sent to his favorite charity, Teen Challenge in Rehrersburg, PA.
Ian was born March 13 1941 in Scotland as his parents believed it was safer for their son to be born away from their home near Sheffield England during World War II. Ian returned to England at age 2 and lived surrounded by family until leaving home to study chemistry at University of Liverpool. In 1970, Ian moved to the US to marry Nancy Turner. They were married for 14 years; Nancy passed away from cancer in 1985.
Ian is survived by his only daughter, Cherilyn Turner Boller, and his son-in-law Timothy Boller, of Houston, TX.
Ian worked as a food scientist until his retirement.
He loved playing and watching soccer as well as watching Formula 1 racing, particularly with his son-in-law. Ian loved attending his current home church, Life in Christ Fellowship in Dillsburg, PA.
Services will be held remotely on Saturday, May 2, at 11 am eastern, hosted on Facebook Live, with his dear friend Reverend Stephen Spuler officiating.
The family intends to have a memorial service later in the year after social distancing restrictions are lifted. An announcement will be made at that time by Life in Christ Fellowship.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations in Ian's name be sent to his favorite charity, Teen Challenge in Rehrersburg, PA.
HERE is a link to the audio for the memorial service held for Ian on May 2, 2020. It was held virtually (due to the COVID-19 pandemic) at Ian's church, Life In Christ Fellowship, Dillsburg, PA.
Do you have a memory of Ian that you would like to share? Send it to us using the form below and we will publish it here. We will keep your identity and personal information confidential.
Memories Of Ian
I worked with Ian for ten years as a volunteer for AARP Tax Aide. I remember him putting in countless hours to keep our group of volunteers together to help our local residents get their taxes done. It won't be the same not having him with us doing taxes next year. We are like a family and Ian will be sorely missed. He was a kind person with a great sense of humor.
- Don
I will truly miss Ian. He started the AARP program up about three years ago at Mission Central. When he could take a break he would pull out his banana and get a cup of coffee and come chat with me at my desk. Loved his accent and his smile. He was such a kind and gentle man. May he be a peace with our Lord in heaven.
- Margy
I did not know Ian for a long time. But I did have the pleasure to work with him for a couple of years. He is always so warm, friendly and willing to help. I will miss him dearly.
- Stella
Thanks for letting us know this very, very sad news. Ian Turner was among other things a true gentleman. Someone who was always extremely dedicated to the AARP Taxwise program. I will say that during very, very difficult times a while back he singlehandedly did his very best to keep the volunteer group together in spite of what was going on around all of us involved with the program. This chapter could have very easily crashed and burned without him. He always believed in the program and the people who volunteered their time to support it. Many new volunteers have entered the program in the last couple of years and may not have seen the Ian us old timers knew. Ian Turner was truly a good guy.
I first met Ian in the Fall of 2008 when I retired and found this program as an outlet to volunteer and give something back. Ian told me very early I would value the personal satisfaction associated with seeing someone we helped in this program who truly appreciated what we did. He was so right! All of us involved in the program have experienced that emotion.
I feel very fortunate to call this man my friend. He was someone any of us could fall back on for support and guidance. He walked many of us through the problems with computers and printers, the first two weeks of every tax season, the Taxwise program, and the challenges of being a Site Coordinator. But most of all he never let us forget the purpose of this great program. To always provide our very best support to the people who needed it the most. The people who walked into those sites in the Spring of every year were the people he reminded us were the people who needed out help and appreciated us the most.
I personally was very fortunate back in March to have an opportunity to spend some time with Ian. This year I took over as POA for my 93 year old mother and I discovered I needed to file 3 years of amended State returns. I called Ian for some guidance and review. After a couple of phone calls he eventually took some time from his busy schedule to meet me and review my work before I mailed them. That was Ian Turner. One hell of a guy and someone I was fortunate to get to know because he talked me into taking that crazy class in January of 2009. I'm am the lucky guy.
Those of us who knew him well will miss him and appreciate the fact we got to know him. I will never forget that accent and that smile. Sheffield Wednesday soccer games on FOX Sports will never be the same. God Bless Him!!!
-Ron
I will miss Ian's warm smile and calm demeanor. When he assumed the District Coordinator position, the Tax Aide Program on the West Shore was on thin ice with limited resources. His leadership and determination helped to rejuvenate the Program. As the Brits would say "jolly good fellow".
- Gene
In Memoriam Ian Turner
I first got to know Ian in early 2013, when I initially volunteered to do taxes for the AARP Tax-Aide program. At that time, Ian had been volunteering with the program for two decades and was the District Coordinator (DC) for District 8, which covered several locations in Cumberland County on the Harrisburg West Shore. I remember that I stumbled a bit during the training process, even though I had received some training on taxes during my professional career. I found Ian to be a kind and caring mentor, even though he made it clear he had high standards.
In the more than seven years since then, Ian became my close friend. We worked together on the tax program and I got more involved in the technology side of things, eventually becoming the District’s Technology Coordinator. I learned that he took a great deal of pride in the tax work he did each year. I worked under him for several years at the Mechanicsburg Place location. There I learned how much he was adored by the many clients he had served for many years. This was especially true of the women there. Some of us volunteers referred affectionately to them as “Ian’s Girlfriends”.
Ian’s kind and considerate nature became evident when he was dealing with clients whose mental faculties were starting to slip. Some of us would start to lose patience after explaining the same thing for the seventh time. Ian never did. He was always willing to explain a tax issue again and again until the client was satisfied.
Beyond the work with clients, as DC, Ian spent countless hours behind the scenes organizing the work of the District before, during and after the tax season. He did all of this quietly and without asking for any recognition.
Ian did have some quirks, which to me and others made him even more endearing. Although he had lived in the U.S. for many decades, he retained a thick Scottish brogue. It became a common joke that Ian would either have to say the same thing over and over, or someone would have to translate what he had said into “American”. Ian was also fairly hopeless with technology. It wasn’t that he was a total Luddite. He did appreciate the things that could be done with computers. He just needed help to make it work, which we were happy to give.
I know that Ian loved his family, especially his late wife and surviving daughter and son in law. I hope I have been able to convey the tremendous regard and affection that his fellow tax volunteers and especially his adoring clients held him in. Ian will be missed tremendously.
If I had to sum up Ian in one phrase, it would be this: “An Old-School Gentleman”.
- Jim
- Don
I will truly miss Ian. He started the AARP program up about three years ago at Mission Central. When he could take a break he would pull out his banana and get a cup of coffee and come chat with me at my desk. Loved his accent and his smile. He was such a kind and gentle man. May he be a peace with our Lord in heaven.
- Margy
I did not know Ian for a long time. But I did have the pleasure to work with him for a couple of years. He is always so warm, friendly and willing to help. I will miss him dearly.
- Stella
Thanks for letting us know this very, very sad news. Ian Turner was among other things a true gentleman. Someone who was always extremely dedicated to the AARP Taxwise program. I will say that during very, very difficult times a while back he singlehandedly did his very best to keep the volunteer group together in spite of what was going on around all of us involved with the program. This chapter could have very easily crashed and burned without him. He always believed in the program and the people who volunteered their time to support it. Many new volunteers have entered the program in the last couple of years and may not have seen the Ian us old timers knew. Ian Turner was truly a good guy.
I first met Ian in the Fall of 2008 when I retired and found this program as an outlet to volunteer and give something back. Ian told me very early I would value the personal satisfaction associated with seeing someone we helped in this program who truly appreciated what we did. He was so right! All of us involved in the program have experienced that emotion.
I feel very fortunate to call this man my friend. He was someone any of us could fall back on for support and guidance. He walked many of us through the problems with computers and printers, the first two weeks of every tax season, the Taxwise program, and the challenges of being a Site Coordinator. But most of all he never let us forget the purpose of this great program. To always provide our very best support to the people who needed it the most. The people who walked into those sites in the Spring of every year were the people he reminded us were the people who needed out help and appreciated us the most.
I personally was very fortunate back in March to have an opportunity to spend some time with Ian. This year I took over as POA for my 93 year old mother and I discovered I needed to file 3 years of amended State returns. I called Ian for some guidance and review. After a couple of phone calls he eventually took some time from his busy schedule to meet me and review my work before I mailed them. That was Ian Turner. One hell of a guy and someone I was fortunate to get to know because he talked me into taking that crazy class in January of 2009. I'm am the lucky guy.
Those of us who knew him well will miss him and appreciate the fact we got to know him. I will never forget that accent and that smile. Sheffield Wednesday soccer games on FOX Sports will never be the same. God Bless Him!!!
-Ron
I will miss Ian's warm smile and calm demeanor. When he assumed the District Coordinator position, the Tax Aide Program on the West Shore was on thin ice with limited resources. His leadership and determination helped to rejuvenate the Program. As the Brits would say "jolly good fellow".
- Gene
In Memoriam Ian Turner
I first got to know Ian in early 2013, when I initially volunteered to do taxes for the AARP Tax-Aide program. At that time, Ian had been volunteering with the program for two decades and was the District Coordinator (DC) for District 8, which covered several locations in Cumberland County on the Harrisburg West Shore. I remember that I stumbled a bit during the training process, even though I had received some training on taxes during my professional career. I found Ian to be a kind and caring mentor, even though he made it clear he had high standards.
In the more than seven years since then, Ian became my close friend. We worked together on the tax program and I got more involved in the technology side of things, eventually becoming the District’s Technology Coordinator. I learned that he took a great deal of pride in the tax work he did each year. I worked under him for several years at the Mechanicsburg Place location. There I learned how much he was adored by the many clients he had served for many years. This was especially true of the women there. Some of us volunteers referred affectionately to them as “Ian’s Girlfriends”.
Ian’s kind and considerate nature became evident when he was dealing with clients whose mental faculties were starting to slip. Some of us would start to lose patience after explaining the same thing for the seventh time. Ian never did. He was always willing to explain a tax issue again and again until the client was satisfied.
Beyond the work with clients, as DC, Ian spent countless hours behind the scenes organizing the work of the District before, during and after the tax season. He did all of this quietly and without asking for any recognition.
Ian did have some quirks, which to me and others made him even more endearing. Although he had lived in the U.S. for many decades, he retained a thick Scottish brogue. It became a common joke that Ian would either have to say the same thing over and over, or someone would have to translate what he had said into “American”. Ian was also fairly hopeless with technology. It wasn’t that he was a total Luddite. He did appreciate the things that could be done with computers. He just needed help to make it work, which we were happy to give.
I know that Ian loved his family, especially his late wife and surviving daughter and son in law. I hope I have been able to convey the tremendous regard and affection that his fellow tax volunteers and especially his adoring clients held him in. Ian will be missed tremendously.
If I had to sum up Ian in one phrase, it would be this: “An Old-School Gentleman”.
- Jim