Turina McCLELLAND Obituary

It's been a year. A year. I still can't fathom you are gone. How is this world real? Miss you, sister. Every day.

I miss you.

As Turina's oldest sister, it feels like I have lost part of my soul. One minute life was good, things were happy, everything was in place. A lot can change in one minute. My life is still good, things aren't totally happy.....yet, and things are not in place. I know it will get better in time, but I will forever have a gaping hole in my heart.

Turina was my go-to girl. She knew me inside and out. Her and I were together in our struggles, and in our successes. She was instrumental in bringing me to the Lord, and she was staunch in her beliefs. She was so smart, so stalwart, and so giving. I didn't even have to say words to her and she knew. We laughed, and we cried. We grew up and started growing old. We won't grow old together...

This terrible experience has jolted me in to the awareness of the value and importance of the people we love, the shortness of our time here on Earth, and the insignificance of the stuff and things of life.

I will miss you Turina everyday of my life, and I look forward to seeing you again in heaven. I will love you forever.

I am heartbroken to hear about Turina's sudden passing. I still can't believe she isn't with us, and I won't see her smiling face at one of our weekly work meetings or hear about her travel adventures again. My interactions with Turina always felt uplifting. She struck me as a grounded, kind, loving, giving and gentle soul. Her love for travel and desire to live every day to the fullest has inspired me to do the same. I will miss Turina and will always remember her for the adventurous, resilient and incredibly intelligent person she was.

I want to share our heartfelt condolences for your loss of Turina. She was a member of our board of directors several years ago, where she leaves a legacy as a caring leader with a big heart for the needs of women and children. Having lost my own sister a few months ago, also in a tragic way, I have some sense of our loss and pain. You are in our thoughts.

Although I never met her, indeed only spoke to her once, I could tell she was a wonderful sister. May her loved ones find peace.

Turina was a rock in my life. A solid foundation. A person I could always trust and rely on. She was my older sister. I had talked to her the day she died and I still go through her messages. She was in my life in one second and the next she was gone. With no fanfare. Just gone. And I feel completely robbed. She had so much more to do in this life. She exuded warm joy, support, and a kind of peaceful acceptance. I have so much more to say. So many more stories and prayers and desperate pleas. Turina, I miss you. I love you.

I worked with Turina, and not only was I impressed with her skills and intelligence, I also liked her warmth, sense of humor, and ability to work well with our team. It breaks my heart to know that I won't be working with her, but I know she's in a better place and at peace.