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Freddie Ray Turner was born in Mesa, Arizona, on July 15, 1949, the youngest of Carlanthe and Jimmie Turner’s seven children.  Fred attended the Chandler public schools and graduated high school in 1966.  He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Drama and Spanish from Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona.

Relocated to the Bay Area, he continued his education, and earned a master’s degree in Education Administration from California State University-Hayward.

Fred enjoyed a 27-year career (1972-1999) with the Oakland Unified School District.  Starting as a classroom teacher, he went on to serve as a vice principal, principal and retired as director of Student Services.  But retirement was not in the cards for Fred.  He went on to serve as the Fremont Unified School District’s director of Pupil Services for five years, retiring in 2004.

Throughout his life, Fred traveled the world.  He didn’t just have a “travel bug,” Fred was a travel bug. He graduated from overnight stays in youth hostels in Paris, Rome, and Madrid to vacationing in much finer accommodations in Kenya, Turkey, China, Japan, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Israel, Amsterdam, and South Africa.  If there was an airport, at some time in his life Fred Turner landed in it.

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Fred was a devoted member of Brother-to-Brother from 2005 until his passing.  He was also a life associate of the East Oakland-Hayward section of the National Council for Negro Women, an organization he strongly supported since 2013. Fred also served on the Board of Directors for the Leadership Institute at Allen Temple Baptist Church.

An avid reader, Fred’s response to the lockdown caused by the 2020 COVID pandemic was to organize “Plot Chasers,” a close group of friends who meet weekly to read and discuss short stories.

Fred passed away on Dec. 15, 2024, following a brief hospitalization. He was predeceased by his parents, his sister, Madelyn, and brothers Robert Lee and Franklin Eugene.

He leaves to mourn his surviving siblings Artie Mae Clark, Dorothy Rome, and Jimmie Richard Turner; first cousin, Catherine Markham; a host of nieces and nephews, great- nieces and nephews, and very close friends.

A Celebration of Life Service will be held at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 8, at Allen Temple Family Life Center, 8501 International Blvd., in Oakland, CA.

In lieu of flowers, the family is asking that friends honor Fred’s memory with a donation in Fred’s name to the National Alzheimer’s & Related Disorders Association, or to the East Bay AIDs Advocacy Foundation. 

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