Obituaries

A longtime resident of Grande Prairie, Gwendoline (Wilcox) Turner, passed away on the 1st day of July 2026 at the age of 101, just over a month shy of her 102nd birthday. Gwen was born in Edmonton to John and Emma (Jacks) Wilcox on August 9th, 1924. Gwen’s parents both immigrated to Canada from England, John in 1910 and Emma in 1919.

John had a 45-year railroad career beginning with the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) in Montreal as a machinist interrupted by his enlistment in World War I from 1914-1919, during which he was gassed and ultimately injured in 1918 at Vimy Ridge. He met Emma while recovering from his injuries. On his return to Canada, John resumed working for CPR, but he needed to move as it was too hot for him in Montreal after being gassed, so he moved west and tried a short stint homesteading at Sturgeon Lake, AB, before joining the Northern Alberta Railway (NAR) in Edmonton. Emma joined him and they were married in Edmonton in 1921 subsequently moving to Lac La Biche. He was a general locomotive foreman with the NAR working in Lac La Biche for seven years, a year in Wembley and two in Hythe. John suggested the location of the line’s western terminus in Dawson Creek, not only purchasing the site for the railway but he was also instrumental in moving the town from the old site to the present one.

The Wilcox family moved north with the rail line, arriving in 1930 in Dawson Creek on the first passenger train. As head of the NAR in Dawson Creek, John handled all shipments of equipment for construction of the Alaska Highway. After retiring in 1957, John, served as an original alderman on the first city council in 1958-59 and mayor in 1960 and 1961 for Dawson Creek, B.C.

Gwen and her three siblings attended grade school in Dawson Creek, and as an athlete she excelled in track and field, winning several awards of which she was very proud. After school, Gwen saved her earnings from working at the railway station and put herself through nursing school at St. Paul’s Hospital School of Nursing in Vancouver, B.C., graduating as a Registered Nurse in 1947. Education was important in the Wilcox family and as a result her sister June was also an R.N., sister Edie attained a Bachelor of Commerce, and brother John attained his Master’s in Petroleum Engineering, uncommon achievements for an entire family of their time.

In search of a nursing job following graduation, Gwen moved to Kelowna then Edmonton and eventually ended up in Grande Prairie working at the Grande Prairie Hospital and living in the nurses’ residence. She joined the nurses’ bowling team, the Penicillin Kids, and it was through bowling that she met her future husband, Charles W.S. Turner, another athlete, who used to say he “was bowled over by her.”

Gwen married Charlie Turner in 1949, and together they had four children, Clifford, John, Patricia, and Suzanne. Gwen quit nursing after the birth of her first child but returned to it many years later as one of two employees responsible for the local monthly Cancer Clinic, a position she held for over 25 years until a more permanent clinic was established at the QE II hospital.

A happy, athletic, and hard-working person, Gwen loved sewing, knitting, crocheting, gardening, curling, golf, and, as an avid genealogist, one of her favorite pastimes was working on the family tree. Not afraid to get her hands dirty, she would often spend evenings helping Charlie on a construction site. She was a member of Eastern Star and the Daughters of the Nile and a member of Christ Church Anglican. Gwen lived a long, fulfilling life, outlasting all her immediate family and all of her fellow nursing classmates. Not without health issues over the years, she had a strong will to live and overcame many serious ailments that would have derailed many. Gwen’s favorite quote was: “It’s a good life, if you don’t weaken.”

Gwen will be dearly missed and lovingly remembered by her sons, Cliff and John (Kathleen) Turner, and daughters, Pat (Ellery) Lemky and Suzanne Dunn, all of Grande Prairie.

Gwen leaves her beloved grandchildren, Brieanne (Chanse Vigen) and Brady (Janessa) Turner; Michelle, Daniel, and Hannah Turner; Shane, Mark (Clarice Benemerito), Katrina (Ken Carlson), Danica, and Becky Lemky; and Alana Dunn (Bryce Mould); her great grandchildren, Charlie and Emily Carlson; Elena, Avery, and Blake Lemky; Presley and Beckett Turner; and William and Nathan Mould, as well as many nieces, nephews, extended family, and friends in both Canada and England.

Gwen was predeceased by her parents, John and Emma Wilcox, brother, John Wilcox, sisters, June Dunseith and Edie Williscroft, parents-in-law, Charles and Jeanne Turner, husband, Charlie Turner, and son-in-law, Arthur Dunn.

Thanks to Dr. Pope, the staff at Wildrose Manor/Villas, and the hospital nursing staff who all took such good care of her. Special thanks to her granddaughter, Katrina (who became an RN following in her Grandma’s footsteps), for all her dedication to her Grandma’s health and wellness over the last few years.

A celebration of life and memorial service will be held on 29th day of July at 11:00 a.m. at Bear Creek Funeral Home with the Rev. Deacon Karen Kovacs officiating. A fellowship luncheon will follow. Cremation has taken place with interment to be at the Grande Prairie cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Canadian Cancer Society, the Grande Prairie Regional Hospital Foundation, or a charity of one's choice.