Mrs. Sarah "Sally" C. Turner

Sarah Clement (Sally) Turner, 84, of Shandon, Columbia, flew the coop on Sunday, December 9th 2024.  She was proceeded in death by two step-sons Lonnie and David Turner.  She is survived by her loving and devoted husband of 44 years, Lonnie E. Turner, Jr, her sons and daughters-in-law Robert & Dreama Beaty, and David & Luz Beaty, step-children and their spouses Robert & Jean Turner, Darren &  JoNell Turner, and Jody & Ed Davis, granddaughter Sarah Grace Malloy and her husband Denmark Vese Malloy, granddaughter Brooks Beaty, great-granddaughters MaryJane, Erykah, and Mya Malloy, numerous step-grandchildren, and many beloved friends and acquaintances.

Sally grew up in Roanoke Virginia, the daughter of G. Frank and Geraldine Clement.  She attended Mary Baldwin College and graduated from UNC Chapel Hill with a degree in psychology in 1962.  She lived in Durham and Charlotte before finally settling in Columbia with her first husband Bob Beaty and their two boys in 1973.

Sally was an intelligent, artistic, and creative person with an entrepreneurial spirit.  For many years she ran her own wallpaper hanging business, beautifying the interiors of countless homes in the midlands and making countless new contacts and friends in the process.  Later she operated a successful picture-framing business out of a workshop in her home.

Sally was also very active in the community - she advocated for fair housing in Charlotte, mentored a number of youth in Columbia, hosted foreign exchange students in her home, helped to run the Good, Unlimited organization, campaigned for political candidates, and hosted and was active in a number of long-running discussion groups, a women’s empowerment group, an investment club, and book clubs.

Sally had a profound love and respect for nature; she found immense joy in listening to the songs of birds and seeing them build nests and rear their young.  Whether on a walk or simply sitting with a cup of coffee, she savored the diversity, the quirkiness, and the wonder of the outdoors, finding compassion with and inspiration in the animals, the insects, and the flowers.

Sally was inquisitive, irreverent, and fun, and she delighted in the company of others.  She learned to trust in herself and others and not be judgmental, and she developed deep, rich, and lifelong friendships.  Sally loved helping others, and they often turned to her for advice and encouragement.  Currents of optimism and joy ran throughout her entire life, and her infectious spirit rubbed off on others.  She will be missed!

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