ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. — So many people have posted on social media about Sgt. Herschel Turner, sent their condolences to his family and shared stories about him that it’s become hard for his sister Talisa Turner keep track.
She also can't believe so many people actually knew him.
But, if they call him one of three nicknames, and can’t help but laugh when recalling what he meant to them, that’s how she said she knows they’re legit.
“His siblings called him ‘Little Ugly,’ and we just started calling him ‘Ug’ and it stuck with us forever,” she said. “They also called him the ‘St. Louis TuPac,’ because he had a bald head and looked like him.”
Sometimes, he went by Hershey, she added.
“I never knew so many people loved and cared for my brother the way that they did, it just warms my heart a lot but it still doesn’t fill that void that I have on the inside,” she said. “I was blessed with him as my brother, but I feel like he was everybody’s brother.”
Turner, 54, was struck and killed by a Bellefontaine Neighbors police officer during a traffic stop. He died Dec. 5.
Sgt. Turner's family and law enforcement family are preparing to say their final goodbyes. His wife, eight children and six siblings will be joined by his fellow officers and the community at a visitation scheduled at Reliable Funeral home Sunday. A memorial mass will take place at the Cathedral Basilica at 10 a.m. Monday.
His sister said the burial at Calvary Cemetery is for family and officers only.
“I’m just not ready to say goodbye,” Talisa Turner said. “I know this is God’s decision but I just wanted a little more time.
“I’m empty, it’s just like a hole I know that’s not going to be filled.”
Herschel turner was born in Howardville, Missouri, a town of about 300 people about two-and-a-half hours south of St. Louis.
He was one of six siblings and was named after his father.
Growing up, he split his time between his hometown and University City, where his father lived with some of his other siblings including Talisa Turner.
Before becoming a police officer, he drove a school bus with Minette Miller for Saint Louis Public Schools.
“If ever there was a child who came out of the house without a hat or a coat or mittens or whatever, he would go on his breaks and buy them what they needed,” she recalled of the time they spent bussing children from the city to county schools as part of the desegregation program.
She also said his humor was contagious.
“He could make a joke out of anything, even just a dog walking down the street, he was just that funny,” she said. “If you met him, you loved him."
If he couldn’t make it as a comedian, his sister said he wanted to become a police officer.
“He wanted to make a difference about how people look at police officers,” she said. “He wanted to make an impact that they don’t just come to calls, they help you 24/7 even out of uniform.
“He had a thing for helping people.”
He worked for Velda City and Pagedale police before joining Moline Acres five years ago.
“When he did police work at night, during the day he literally had all kinds of car tools in his truck and he would drive around on the highways and he would help stranded drivers during the day,” his sister said.
Moline Acres Mayor Michelle DeShay said he was a mentor for the children who lived there.
“He’s always been an officer who came in and did his job and didn’t complain, at least not around me,” she said. “He was very funny but very serious about his job, a mentor for our children in the community and just always willing to be that individual who was always first to help out … so it doesn’t surprise me he was helping out on a stop, he was right there to help out on call that came out.”
If ever there was a city event, including Moline Acres Awareness Day, Turner was the first to show up and help set up or break down after the event, DeShay recalled.
He also had a stutter.
“When he got excited, you could understand nothing he was saying,” DeShay said. “He would make fun of himself and make other people laugh.”
When his younger sister, Talisa Turner, 43, started having heart problems, her big brother was there to help her, too.
He went with her to doctor’s appointments and made her laugh so much, she would have to kick him out of the room.
He was married to his wife, Donna, for about 20 years, his sister said.
Former St. Louis County police sergeant Byron "Sarge" Watson has been serving as a chaplain for his former department, and has been meetig with Turner's family and widow since his death.
He said he Turner's widow told him she supported her husband's dream to become an officer.
"She told him, 'I want you to focus just totally on the police academy and I'll take care of all the bills, and I'll take care of everything,' and I just thought that was just a sign of the relationship they must have had together," he said.
Turner's sister said he had eight children, including a son who lives in Japan with his wife, who is in the Navy.
“His heart is broken because he can’t make it (to the funeral),” Talisa Turner said.
Talisa Turner said her heart breaks for the officer who accidentally struck and killed her brother, too. She said the hate she has seen on social media spewed by those blaming him for the accident upsets her.
She blames those who were running from the police.
“He literally was helping another cop and some fools in a car speeding running from the police, they clipped them and he ran to the other side and that’s when the other cop clipped him walking on the other side,” she explained. “He has to live for the rest of his life knowing what happened.
“I know that Ug wouldn’t want him to feel the way people are trying to make him feel. I want to one day meet up with him and let him know that I’m sorry he has to go through this as well.”
For now, Talisa Turner said she’s keeping her bedroom curtains open, wishing she could see her brother pull up in her driveway.
“And then I have to face the reality that it’s not going to happen,” she said. “But I never realized until his passing how loved he was by the St. Louis community.”
