Exchange Club member Jerry Miller congratulated Freddie Turner on being honored as the Troy Exchange Club’s 2016 Book of Golden Deeds award recipient.

“You are what this award is all about,” Miller told Turner as he shook his hand.

The award was presented to Turner of Brundidge at the Exchange Club’s Thursday meeting by Club President Ed Merkel, who cited the recipient’s many contributions to the Pike County community.
“Freddie Turner is a true hero,” Merkel said.

Turner has served his county with the Alabama National Guard, is active with his church and volunteers with many charitable and assistance groups in the county.

Turner accepted the award with gratitude and humility, which are his trademarks.

“I am humbled to be here and to receive this award,” Turner told the Exchange Club members who paid tribute to him. “This means a lot to me. More than I can say.”

Turner said he is a country boy from New Hope and he son of a sharecropper.

He laughingly said he failed to see any purpose in mastering “A Tale of Two Cities” and dropped out of high school.

When he got his draft notice he was banking on a childhood ailment to him from accepting Uncle Sam’s invitation.
“But the draft board said there was nothing wrong with me,” Turner said, laughing. “So, I got in.”

Turner served in Vietnam and he admitted that he was scared to death.

“I saw things that I’ll never be able to forget,” he said. “You don’t forget the smell of dried blood and burned flesh. I thank God that I made it through.”

Turner served his country in another time of war with the 900th Maintenance Company in Saudi Arabia.

“I came home from Vietnam and was cussed and spit on. I came home from Desert Strom as a hero,” he said. “I didn’t understand.”

What Turner did understand was that he had a commitment to others, an obligation to do good for his fellowman.

“My mother was always praying,” he said. “She was a humble woman. She taught me to do for others, not for myself.”

The lessons that Turner learned from his mother and the sense of giving and belonging that he found at Tennille United Methodist Church have been his guide. He organizes and carries out food drives at his church and is involved its mission projects.

“I get a blessing from what I can do for others,” he said. “I just enjoy people and, if I can do anything for them that makes their lives better, then I want to do it.”
Turner began volunteering first at the nursing home and assisted care facilities in Troy.

“Seeing how much the residents enjoyed visits, I just kept going,” he said. “I volunteer with the Salvation Army because of all the good they do for people here at home. I go to the hospital and help out there when I can. I get a blessing from those people.”

Turner is a member of the local American Legion Post and the VFW. He assists veterans with their needs and participates in patriotic services and celebrations in the local area.

“Prayer, my family and my church are what keep me going and encouraged to do what I can for other people,” he said. “That is my blessing in life. I’m not looking for recognition. Just helping others is enough.”