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DAVID TURNER Obituary
Of Tucson, Arizona and former longtime resident of Redlands, California, passed away August 30, 2013, surrounded by his loving wife and two daughters. Dave was born on July 7, 1936 in Dayton, Ohio to David Wade and Louise Turner (deceased). He is survived by Linda, his wife of 53 years, whom he met at the University of Arizona; brother Kent Turner (Tehachapi, CA) and family; daughters Tamara (Herb) of Roseville, CA and Deborah (Tony) of San Bernardino, CA and four grandchildren, Kelen David, Caitlin, Andrew and Jakob.
We will miss his humor, integrity and strength. His motto was "we can make this work". At the age of 28, he successfully founded Pioneer Consultants (1964), a geotechnical and material engineering firm in Redlands and subsequently founded two additional firms in associated fields. He was a licensed professional engineer in four states.
He shared his geotechnical engineering knowledge, experience and time in numerous ways: senate subcommittees, expert witness, teaching at local colleges, published in various journals. He was active in professional organizations: American Society of Civil Engineers, Fellow; CA Geo Engineers, past president and director; American Society of Testing and Materials.
Education and our youth were important to him. While a member of the Tucson Rotary, he mentored in the public school system and while with the Redlands Rotary, he chaired the scoliosis screening for students in the school district. He also was a candidate for political offices in both communities.
While in Redlands, he worked on the Redlands Water Rate Review; San Bernardino Grading Board of Appeals; Grading Ordinance Review Committee for Riverside and San Bernardino; Citizen Committee for the Preservation of Tri-City Airport; Boy Scouts of America, Grayback Council; and Goodwill Industries.
In Tucson, he was a member of the Arizona Coliseum and Exposition Center Board in Phoenix; University of Arizona President's Club; U of A Alumni Industry Council for Civil Engineering and Engineering Mechanics Departments; Galileo Circle and da Vinci Circle; and donor of a life-size statue "The Newsboy" (James Muir, Artist) to the U of A Library.
His passion, after family, friends and service, was flying. Licensed as a private pilot he served the Sheriff's Department in Tucson as a pilot for prisoner transport. He obtained his EMT (Emergency Medical Training) license to always be better prepared to help and was Team Leader in the Mounted Search and Rescue Team in San Bernardino County.
His wishes were for a small family service at a future time. Donations in his memory can be directed to The University of Arizona Foundation, Gift Planning, PO Box 210109, Tucson, AZ 85721-01019 with reference to Civil Engineering Scholarships, David W. Turner.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
Memories and Condolences
for DAVID TURNER
4 Entries
September 22, 2013
I started with Dave Turner's company, Pioneer Consultants in Redlands, California in 1978. At that time,
I was a poor refugee immigrant boy with an engineering degree, just starting a new life with my family. I worked hard, and Dave appreciated and rewarded hard work. He himself set the best example for us. Dave was a strong character, and I admired him for always being honest, straight forward, being true to his values and helpful with those that needed it.
In addition to his engineering company, he established a geotechnical drilling company and a chemical testing laboratory. Dave made a difference, and through his engineering work and companies, he made Southern California a better place.
I will remember Dave as a great engineer, as a true problem solver and an inventor of new procedures. One of my first engineering projects was to provide geotechnical triaxial shear testing for a dam safety evaluation as a sub-consultant to a large engineering firm, and he entrusted me with fixing up the testing equipment, testing and reporting. Before I arrived at Pioneer Consultants, he was the co-designer of the New Dam at Lake Arrowhead, and he entrusted me with keeping up the dam's safety monitoring with the piezometers and instrumentation built into the dam, which assisted us to determine when we needed to lower the lake level in some of those wet years we had in the 80s and 90s. For many years, I prepared the dam's safety engineering reports for the State. His company was the second in the U.S. to introduce the Cone Penetrometer Testing, which was revolutionary at that time in geotechnical engineering, since it collected real time digital data of soil parameters, eliminating the need for soil borings, sampling and laboratory testing. He supported engineering research with a couple of universities at that time, developing computer software for settlement and deep foundation bearing capacity calculations, which were also successfully used for many of our geotechnical engineering projects. We devised innovative engineering methods for the successful development of land near earthquake fault lines, in ground subsidence areas, and in previously swampy areas covered with soft sediments. In the 80s, it was also the time for the development of many previously vacant hillside properties in Southern California. Dave allowed us to purchase and also develop slope stability software, which were put in good use in our engineering projects for landslide evaluations and stabilization. He allowed me to provide engineering design and evaluate the stability of new dams, and for some of them, construction engineering management.
I looked up to Dave with great respect and was grateful for all the challenging engineering work he allowed me to do. I will always remember that Dave gave me a chance and opportunity to start my new life and raise a family in this great and free Country; and an opportunity to become a professional engineer here.
Nick Hont, Kingman, Arizona
Ed & Nancy Sanaghan/EMMCo.HVAC
September 17, 2013
We enjoyed our encounters with Dave over the years. He will be greatly missed. With deepest sympathy for your family,
Randall Rodman Holdridge
September 8, 2013
"The Newsboy" sculpture gives me a happy feeling each time I pass by him when entering the University's Main Library. Thank you, Mr. Turner.
Jack Van Schoyck
September 7, 2013
To Dave's family,
I met Dave at Tucson Country Club. We played golf together many times. I agree completely with the wording in the obituary. He was the definition of a "nice guy". I am saddened by his loss. Please accept my sympathy.
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