Turner family makes military mark - all four children attend military academies

Ebony, May, 1993 by Lisa C. Jones

THE Turners of the Washington, D.C., area are probably America's No. 1 service academy family, for all four of the the Turner siblings--Maj. Henry Turner Jr., Lt. Ingrid Turner, and Capts. Eric and Michael Turner--have graduated from either the U. S. Military Academy at West Point or the Naval Academy at Annapolis--a feat few families, whether Black or White, can match.

And even though these bright, young adults have amassed a sizeable collection of medals and awards between them, they bestow their highest honor on their mother, June, a retired schoolteacher, and their dad, Dr. Henry Turner Sr., a retired Army colonel and optometrist, for equipping them for success.

"My mother and further have always stressed education. It's been paramount in everything that they've done," says eldest son Henry jr., who along with his identical twin brothers, Eric and Michael, graduated from West Point, while sister, Ingrid, opted for an education from Annapolis. "I've tried-a-nd so have my brothers and sister--to use education as a stepping-stone to gain opportunities in the military," Henry Jr. adds proudly.

Indeed, the gains of the Turner crew have been outstanding. Following closely in the footsteps of their father who accrued more than 30 years of military service, all of the Turner children have chosen to make a career of military life. Henry Jr. is completing a one-year fellowship with the Office of the Secretary of Defense at the Pentagon. Daughter Ingrid is completing her last year in law school and will become a member of the Navy's Judge Advocate General Corps upon graduation in May. Meanwhile, twin sons Eric and Michael are pursuing Army careers in the infantry and armored branches, respectively.

It's enough to make any parent proud, but especially the Turners. "We've been very, very blessed," says Dr. Turner. "I imagine looking at the two of us as role models and being on military installation posts most of their lives kind of steered them on the right track."

But it was a track that at least one of their children had not planned to take. "Having grown up all my life basically surrounded by military individuals, there was a great push toward joining the military," says Henry Jr. But he says he was dead set against "making that mistake." Yet when a West Point recruiter referred him a scholarship and a chance to attend one of the country's finest institutions, indulge his fancy for football and get a stipend of $500 a month, a motivated Henry soon changed his tune.

After graduating from West Point in 1980, Henry served as the secretary of the general staff for two three-star Army generals. He also served as an executive officer for a rear admiral, and he worked as a military assistant for an Air Force three-star general. In addition, he managed to earn an MBA from Babson College in Wellesley, Mass., on a full Army scholarship in the interim. And he was later sent on military tours to South Korea and to Saudi Arabia during Desert Storm/Shield operations, where he earned a Bronze Star.

Currently, the 34-year-old, married father of three works at the Pentagon, gaining experience in defense acquisition and procurement. "I've been very fortunate in did most of the assignments I've asked for, I've been able to get," says the major who was appointed earlier this year to serve on the Armed Forces Inauguration Committee that escorted dignitaries on Inauguration Day.

Henry's sister, Ingrid, a one-time varsity swimmer, has had a string of opportunities come her way, too. Accepted by three different military academics, she decided to go Navy. Upon graduation from the Naval Academy in 1986, Ingrid was assigned to Monterey, Calif., where she worked as an assistant curricular officer and then as a directorate administrative officer for the Naval Post Graduate School. During that time, Ingrid won the school's coveted "Woman of the Year Award" and eventually earned her MBA, too, by attending both night and day classes. Later, the young lieutenant was stationed at her alma mater, the Naval Academy at Annapolis, where she also served as the women's soccer and softball coach.

"I've always wanted and hoped to become an attorney," says the busy, 29-year-old single woman who was one of seven people chosen Navy-wide to participate in the fully funded law school program at Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law in Washington, D. C.

While sister Ingrid studies law, twin brothers Eric and michael do their part in preparing troops for war. Being twins in a military family isn't easy, but both brothers were willing to accept the dual challenge. "It was hard, but I think West Point prepared us for being apart," says 27-year-old Eric, who is stationed at Ft. Benning, Ga. Eric says he bought into the -family profession- because it had a lot to offer: a good education, extensive travel and intrigue. After he and Michael graduated from West Point in 1987, Eric was initially sent off to Georgia, hundreds of miles away from his "best friend," twin brother Michael, who was originally stationed at a base in Kansas.