William Turner

A couple of days after Christmas 2021, Billy Turner made his final Irish exit. He was barely Irish, but if you saw him on St. Pattys Day you probably wouldve sworn his name was Seamus OConnor. He was a man who never turned down a day to gather with people and celebrate. His departure had no fanfareno long, sad goodbyes. He was just gone and he probably would've wanted it that way because the last thing he wouldve wanted anyone to see was him shedding a tear.Born on February 11, 1954, to Lucienne and William Turner, Billy was a powerful force of energy. They didn't break the mold when he was born, Billy punched it to pieces. In actuality, he probably punched and broke a lot of things around the streets of Kensington back in the day. One doesn't earn the nickname "Moose" with a reputation of elegance and grace.He had three sisters. Two older, Lucienne and Pamela, and one younger, Kimberly. Billy was a classic jokester. He loved making his sisters laugh. One of his favorite laugh-inducing antics was to suspend himself in the air by hooking his pajama bottoms over their bedposts and flailing his legs like an astronaut in zero gravity.Billy excelled in teasing his sisters, especially with odiferous items, which is ironic since he suffered from chronic sinus issues and congestion. He'd often fill their beds with stinky socks, old shoes, or jars of Vicks. When Pamela developed a couple of warts as a child, Billy brilliantly thought of covering his face with tiny spitballs that looked like warts. They accused him of making fun of her, but if you asked him, he wouldve said he wasnt teasing but "bonding" with his sister. Poor Kimberly, by the time she was born he was a master of teasing.Billy wasnt the greatest with rules and discipline so he ended up at Frankford High School, while many of his friends went to North Catholic. He was always a North Catholic boy at heart, spending decades of North/Frankford Thanksgiving football games sitting in the North Catholic side of the bleachers. It was at Frankford, where Billy began to embrace his artistic nature. He was constantly drawing and sketchingstill life, scenery, self-portraits.Upon graduation, Billy fell into the world of roofing and carpet-laying. It was in carpet-laying where Billy shined. He became an artist of carpet installation. His installations were immaculate and soon he had a thriving word-of-mouth installation business. He was always most proud of his seams when merging two pieces of carpet. His nephew, who worked as his schlepper, remembers him always saying Look at that seam! You cant even find it. Thats how good it is!Big, tough, and always good with his hands, Billy took a shot at boxing once the casinos opened in Atlantic City and boxing matches were happening on the regular. This move made perfect sense to anyone who was on the receiving end of one of his "play" punches, which would often knock people off balance. He installed a heavy bag and speed bag in his family's basement for training. His speedbag work shook the foundation of the house, rattling the kitchen table as Kim tried to do her homework. He won a couple of bouts here and there but quickly found out he was a better sparring partner than a boxer.As he grew older, he thought maybe a government pension and benefits was a good idea so he tried a job with the US Post Office. If you think mail is slow now, you must not remember the six or so months when Billy worked at the Philly sorting center. Bored and not one for structure, Billy returned to what he knewcarpet installation.When Billys knees caught up to his age, he started doing security work at construction sites. It was during the boredom of overnight security that his artist tendencies once again surfaced. He whittled, yes whittled, with a pen knife beautiful walking sticks from scrap wood laying around the sites. If you saw him recently, he was probably walking around with one of his Kensington Walking Sticks.He made the local paper oncethe Daily Newsnot for sports achievements or mischief, but for trying to save a life. A warehouse fire threatened the street where his grandmother and uncle lived. Fire authorities feared an explosion and evacuated the block. Billy's Uncle Rich, maybe the only person more stubborn than Billy, refused to leave. Billy grabbed his uncle in a bear-hug and carried him through the house toward the doorway. A press photographer caught Billy struggling with his uncle as he successfully removed him from the house and street.Billy, more than anything, was larger than life in social circles. Whether it was family parties gathered around the kitchen table or local watering holes, he loved socializing with people. He had a contagious, booming laugh that vibrated off the walls. He was like Norm from Cheers, but at dozens of taprooms throughout Kensington and Port Richmond. He never met a bar that he didn't like and wherever he went someone always knew his name.He enjoyed playing the harmonica to Bob Dylan and listening to the likes of David Bowie and The Animals. He liked teasing his nephews and nieces and was a Ph.D. in teasing by the time they arrived. When he hit a sports pool he loved celebrating with hoagies for him and his mom. He liked driving cars that you were never sure would get you to your destination. But most of all, he loved people, especially kids. A neighbor on the day of his passing shared a story that, even in lean times on a fixed income, he would bring her kids Ziploc bags at Christmas filled with change that he saved up for them.There will be a service on Friday, January 7th from noon to 1 p.m. at McCafferty Sweeney Slabinski & Barnes Funerals & Cremations 6128 Torresdale Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19135 - 215-333-0500.
In lieu of flowers, the family is asking for donations to Fresh Artists, a Philly non-profit that focuses on young people in under-resourced schools and helps develop their untapped creative talents. https://www.freshartists.org/donatePlease share your fondest memories of Bill at PhillyFunerals.com. Arrangements by McCafferty Sweeney Slabinski Barnes Funerals and Cremations of Torresdale Avenue, John Barnes Supervisor, 215.333.0500