Arnie's addendum Obituary is posted at Legacy.com

CW04, Arnold "Arnie" Turnquist, 88, passed away peacefully at his Carlsbad, CA home on December 16, 2021. Arnie was a decorated serviceman who served in US Navy for 35 years.  Arnie was born on February 14, 1933 in Watertown, South Dakota, to his parents Cifford and Phyllis Turnquist. When he was just 18 he saw a Poster on the wall of the Post Office that said, "JOIN THE NAVY AND SEE THE WORLD".  And that is exactly what he wanted to do! An excerpt from Arnie's personal penned obituary written awhile back when the Alzheimer's had taken control of his thoughts yet..... "And speaking of the Navy, it was a very huge part of my life as almost everyone who has ever known me, knows. I grew up in the Navy. Most of my adult life was spent in a naval uniform, a uniform I wore proudly for over thirty-five years and which I still revere to this day. All those navy days were not always so great but, once again, the good days far outnumbered the bad. After my boot camp training at Great Lakes, Illinois I was sent to Radioman school in San Diego, my first big disappointment. I had just graduated from high school and I didn’t join the Navy to go to another school. I wanted to go aboard a battleship. But, like a lot of things in my life, it turned out to be exactly what I needed and I was very surprised that I loved being a radioman and I was a pretty darned good one too. And from there I reported aboard my first ship, the USS Arequipa, home ported in Oakland, CA. A rather nondescript ship to say the least, but one I knew was going to take me places over the horizon and I couldn’t wait to get there. I loved being at sea and I learned more about being a sailor on that first ship of mine than all the duty stations combined. That was the first of many different ships and shore stations I served in as you know. The hardest part of my assignments to numerous different ships over the years was all the deployments which took me away from you and your Mom. Those were hard but the homecomings were wonderful beyond description. As my ships were entering port I always went up to the bridge where I could look through those powerful “Big Eye” binoculars to see if I could spot you and your mom way before you spotted me. But I loved sea duty. That is always where I felt best and where I felt I was really doing something important. “Join the Navy and see the World” is what I saw on the recruiting posters, and it was the God’s truth. During my career I had the opportunity to visit 33 different countries and islands from Australia in the south to Iceland in the north, and from China in the orient to Turkey in Europe, traveling through seas in the Pacific, Atlantic, Caribbean, and the Mediterranean. It was a great life and if I had it to do all over again, I’d do it all over again. I loved it all. Up until the end of my life, every time I heard “Anchors Aweigh” it gave me a lump in my throat and a tear in my eye.

Towards the end of my career God saw fit to put some people in my life and recommended that I be trained as a Navy Alcoholism Treatment Specialist, a rigorous and demanding course of instruction that I relished. Upon completion of that I was retained at the Navy’s Alcoholism Treatment center in charge of the Training Department. A whole different world for me and far removed from a career in communications, but I loved it.

When I retired from the Navy I was able to spend time with your grandma and grandpa Turnquist which was another of those special times for me. To be able to be with them right up until the time your grandpa passed away was exactly where I needed to be and what I needed to be doing. Another “God shot” for your dad and there have been many. And all during this time I was extremely worried about what I was going to do with the rest of my life. Enter another God shot for your dad. An old shipmate of mine from my tour of duty at the Navy’s rehab center by the name of Fred Sipe, contacted me and suggested I come to the Betty Ford Center, look around, talk to some people and maybe land a job there. This led me into a job there. I absolutely loved being at the Betty Ford Center as you know. I loved working there and I loved the people I worked with. As with any organization, there were some growing pains within the center, not only my own, but the center’s as well. But one thing always remained paramount there – helping men, women, and families get their lives back. Being able to witness the miracle of recovery for so many and be a small part of that was another blessing for me. I loved working in the halls initially as a Unit Tech and helping the patients acclimate to a very difficult time in their lives. I also had the opportunity to do some of the lectures to the patients while there and I thoroughly enjoyed that. Another very special and my favorite part of working there was being a part of the training department with my old shipmate Fred. I loved working with those who chose to come through the Professional in Residence Program and the program we had for medical students. I loved showing off the center to them and took a great deal of pride in being able to enlighten them in my own small way. I remember with fondness the times when Mrs. Ford would drop in to welcome those who came to participate in the training we offered. She always said it was really to get her “Arnie hug.” To say that was special would be an understatement. Later on I had the opportunity to work in the Focused Continuing Care department working with others whose job it was to make follow-up phone calls to patients after their treatment to help them stay focused on their recoveries. Another God shot for me. It also helped to strengthen my own recovery and those I worked with there were some of the most dedicated and fun people to be around. The Betty Ford Center will forever be a highlight of my life.

Then when Guy and Bryan joined the Navy, I can’t begin to tell you how very proud I felt when you did that. And to be the one to swear Bryan into the Navy and the first one to Salute Guy when he graduated from the Naval Academy, those were moments so special I can’t describe them. I think many a father would envy that. We were a true Navy family, and that includes all of you and your mom, who, surprising to me, loved all the moving around. She became a “jack-of-all-trades” which is what most navy wives become. She could mend a sock or a broken heart, fix a broken fingernail or faucet leak, root for a little league team, sew tutus for Penny and her friends, bowl and play bingo with the best of ‘em, and make six or seven meals out of leftovers.  Joanne passed away in 1998.  She absolutely adored you kids, and when you gave her grandchildren, she was ecstatic.  I see a lot of her in all of you.

And this brings me to Linda, another “God shot” for your dad. I am convinced God put her in my life at precisely the exact time I needed her most. When she came into my life it felt like a huge load had been lifted off me. I fell in love with her from the very beginning of our relationship. She has been a constant source of joy, happiness, and love for me every day since. I love the way you have all encircled her and welcomed her into your families as well. She loves you all and loves being with you.   She gave me so many years of happiness and I will miss her more than I could ever express. She has been another of those gifts from God for me and made the last years of my life happier and fulfilling than I could ever have thought possible. And keep reminding her how much I love her.

In closing, I would really like you all to use this day to celebrate my life. It has been one for the books. I have been so very blessed all along the way. Not only because of you, your Mom and Linda, and all my grandkids and great grandkids, but also because of the wonderful brothers, sisters, and friends I have had along the way. To make an all-inclusive list would take pages, but to mention those who are nearest and dearest to my heart I must include my brothers Dick, Denny, and Dean. My sisters Marilyn, Pat, Sandra, and Pam. Also my dearest and closest friends Stan and Cathy Jones, Dave Hatcher and his wife Paz, Dan Beardshear and his wife Myrna, Mel Purvis and his wife Sonja, Gary Greksouk, my poker playing buddies over the years, Steve Huelett, Alan Massey, Jack Andrus, Jerry “the jeep” McDonald, Scott Johnson, Joe Capela, Paul Dyke, DC Lepley and last but certainly not least, one of my real heroes, Dr. James West and, more recently Dr. Harry Hartounian, a guy with the most contagious sense of humor to come down the pike, and many, many others at the Betty Ford Center. And I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Linda’s daughters, April and Tracey and their husbands Chris and Brian and their kids, Everett, Nathaniel, Grayce, and Violet, who welcomed me into their families and made me feel pretty special as well. I could go on and on. I could never have imagined in my wildest dreams how absolutely wonderful my life was going to be.

When people say to me, “Have a nice day,” my response is always, “I fully intend to do so because it is a personal choice.”

And, to sum it all up, if anyone should ask me how my life was, my answer would be, “On a scale of one to ten, I’d give it a twelve.” (I can see some of you smiling about that right now)

I look forward to seeing you all in heaven. You’ll find me on the first tee or at an AA meeting.

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