I shall pass through this world but once. Any good thing, therefore, that I can do or any kindness that I can show any human being let me do it now. Let me not defer nor neglect it for I shall not pass this way again.

Stephen Grellet

I immediately said yes when Jeanne asked me to go along as her “+1” to a birthday party for a WWII Vet turning 100. Corporal (Cpl) Leonard Turner, USMC, is the father of a colleague of Jeanne’s, Dr. Karen Turner, DO, at St Joseph’s/Candler in Savannah, Georgia.

Reaching the century mark is a remarkable achievement, even more so if you were a Marine Raider in the Pacific in World War II. The Marine Corps League in Savannah threw a party for Cpl Turner at the National Mighty 8th Air Force Museum in Pooler, Georgia, that drew in a large, enthusiastic crowd of well-wishers, including General Robert Magnus, 30th Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps (2005-2008). As is their way, the night was dedicated to Marines taking care of Marines. There were a few retired Navy folks in attendance as well, in case the Marines needed a lift to the beach.

Several speakers stood to congratulate the centenarian milestone and tell the story of CPL Turner’s service to this country. Leonard Turner enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1942 at age 19 with his parents’ blessing. His older brother Bob had already enlisted in the Coast Guard, and his younger brother Bill was in the Marine Corps. (As a side note, Bob is 102, and Bill is 99. The Turners are a resilient bunch.) Younger brothers Dave and Mark would follow in the Army. Leonard’s parents watched five of their nine children go into service in WWII. Can you imagine that kind of sacrifice?

During her remarks, Dr. Karen Turner explained that her father was drawn to the Marines for their legacy, reputation, and training. The uniform was a big plus as well. I have to agree, much to my Navy chagrin, that the Marines have the most spectacular dress uniforms of the American Armed Forces. CPL Turner also picked the Corps because he thought it offered him the best chance for survival.

From boot camp at Camp Elliot, Georgia, Turner went directly to New Caledonia in the South Pacific and volunteered for the 2nd Marine Raider Battalion, a forerunner of Marine Special Forces. During the Guadalcanal Campaign, 221 Raiders operated behind enemy lines, defeating a Japanese force almost 20 times larger in dense jungle. The Raiders cleared the enemy strongholds, moving to secure Henderson Field for use against the Japanese. These Marines fought enemy fire, ringworm, malaria, and the island terrain.

Speaking about her father’s stories, Dr. Turner recounted a moment when an earthquake struck during combat. Corporal Turner had two choices: stay in his foxhole and risk burial alive as the earth shifted under him, or leap from his foxhole and risk a withering enemy fire. With a mischievous smile on her face, she recounted when she asked what decision he made, his reply was, “The right one.”

Corporal Leonard Turner fought through until the end of the war. Served in the 2nd Raider Battalion (“Carlson’s Raiders”), 4th Marine Regiment, Regimental Weapons Company, First Provisional Marine Brigade, and 6th Marine Division; he was in the first waves at the Battles of Bougainville, Guam, and
Okinawa. After the Japanese surrender, he served in the occupation forces in Japan with the military police.

He returned to his native Michigan, married, and worked for General Motors in Michigan and North Carolina. He and his wife, Bea, raised two children, Karen and Jay. It is a story not uncommon for a generation that sacrificed so much to keep their country and the rest of the world free.

At 100, Cpl Turner can still don his Marine Corps Blues and medals with pride. His senior medal is the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal. He has a chest full of campaign ribbons and Pacific War service medals. He proudly wears his World War II Victory Medal, hard-earned as he went from
island to island (Guadalcanal, Efate, Bougainville, Emirau, Guam, Kwajalein, Okinawa, and Japan) off the decks of at least 11 different Navy ships. His battle stars recount some of the most ferocious battles the Marines engaged in from 1942 to 1945. He lost fellow Marines, friends, and comrades along the way.
He fought hard and earned the right to return to his family and friends. His daughter quoted him as saying, “I went in as a mere teen and came out an old man.”

Leonard Turner takes all this attention with great humility. He would likely prefer to let the struggles of long-ago battles pass from his memory. Even at 100 years old, Cpl Turner is a Marine through and through. On this evening, joined by retired and active Marines and other veterans, he continued to inspire members of the Corps born and serving in this century with the same devotion as those who island-hopped in the Pacific in World War II. With him was a lineage of those who served in Korea, Vietnam, the Cold War, Grenada, Desert Storm, The Global War on Terrorism, Operation Enduring Freedom, and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Eighty years of living American history surrounded him. He is an excellent example of a Marine doing his duty, protecting his country, and liberating those who lived under an oppressive Japanese occupation. He endured unimaginable odds in the most deadly environs to come home and live a quiet, productive life. He did so knowing that many Marines he served with never had the chance to go home. They made the ultimate sacrifice.

Leonard Turner living to celebrate his 100th birthday surrounded by family and friends is a beautiful achievement. But, I think Leonard Turner reaching his 23rd birthday in 1946, given all he accomplished and survived in his youth, was nothing short of a miracle. Semper Fi and Happy Birthday, sir!