The One and Only Mrs. Turner

With National Grandparents Day approaching, the Life Enrichment team polled all American House communities to find the resident with the most grandchildren. The winner took us to American House Southgate—and to the young at heart Mrs. Turner. No one knows Mrs. Turner’s first name and that’s just the way she likes it.

“I don’t need young people calling me by my first name and no one else needs to know it either,” she said with a laugh.

While her first name remains a charming mystery, there isn’t anything else the young at heart 91-year-old won’t tell you about her life. She was born in Forest City, Arkansas, on January 8, 1934. She had two brothers, one sister, and her parents worked as sharecroppers and at the Pine Bluff Arsenal during World War II. Life was good for the young Mrs. Turner. She played and climbed trees with the neighborhood boys and never let them beat her in anything. Mrs. Turner graduated from high school on May 23, 1952.

She fell in love and eventually moved to Detroit. Her husband worked for Ford Motor Company, driving a hi-low machine, and her youngest son still drives one for General Motors. She’s lived in Detroit, Inkster and Highland Park. When her two oldest children graduated from high school, Mrs. Turner went back to work at the post office. She’s also worked in Detroit high schools for many years, including 16 years at Cass Tech. Mrs. Turner retired on February 1, 1996.

Mrs. Turner also has a remarkable talent for knowing the exact date of just about anything. Birthdays, weddings, work start days, you name it and she’ll recall the exact date and year. She credits her crazy good memory to doing cross word puzzles, word searches and reading “all the time.” In fact, Mrs. Turner’s knack for knowing dates has her sending out over 200 birthday cards a year.

She had six children with her husband. Her three surviving children are 79, 72 and 69, but from six children Mrs. Turner received … 78 grandchildren. This incredible number includes 23 grands, 44 great-grands and 11 great-great-grandchildren. And yes, she knows all their names.

Mrs. Turner has been at American House Southgate for 12 years and gets along with all the residents. She loves the staff, and, of course, they all know her as the one and only Mrs. Turner.

Visit an American House near you

You’ll see how our maintenance-free living lifestyle promotes staying active in senior living. With healthy chef-prepared meals, senior wellness programs that promote healthy aging and engaging activities, our residents—many in their 90s and beyond—are securely set on a path to longevity. Visit a community near you and meet our dedicated team. In fact, join us for a lunch or happy hour.