Memorial Service Held For Beloved OC Teacher, Soccer Coach Who Died Of ALS
TUSTIN (CBSLA.com) — A memorial service was held Sunday to honor the life of a beloved teacher and high school soccer coach who succumbed to ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease.
Barry Turner died last month -- after a three year battle with ALS -- just shy of his 50th birthday.
In keeping with the coach's love for all things casual, mourners at the celebration of life were told to "dress casually, wear jerseys and bring your own chair."
The service was held at Foothill High School's soccer field renamed in the coach's honor in 2012. The field was crowded by scores of former students and players.
"He was lucky to know the impact he had," said his widow Leanne Turner. "He saw what he did for everybody." The couple was married for 26 years.
CBS2's Cristy Fajardo attended the emotional memorial service and spoke to his former students and his children.
After teaching phys ed in England, Turner came to the Tustin Unified School District in 1989 as a sub.
While ALS eventually silenced Turner's British accent, his loved ones say he never never lost his trademark smile or his winning ways.
He taught math and science for 20 years at Hillview High School. Turner was named "Teacher of the Year" several times.
In addition to teaching at Hillview, Turner served as the Foothill High School Boys Head Soccer Coach for 23 years. His soccer teams won seven league titles and made 14 appearances in CIF competition.
When ALS started to rob Turner of his freedom of movement, students wheeled him in and out of class each day.
Student Brennan Cornwell told Fajardo that Turner was responsible for helping him turn his grades around.
"My GPA wasn't even a 1.0," Cornwell says, "with his determination, he made me understand math, and he made me look forward to going to math. No other teacher could do that."
"Even if you were the worst soccer player or the worst student," said Steve Patterson a coach and former player, "he cared about you."
Friends and family organized a GoFundMe page to raise money for Turner's children's college funds. More than $12,000 has been raised in a month for daughter Stella and son Daley.
"My dad is the best person in the world," said Stella, "and I love him."
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