Arline Katherine (Steffes) Turkington

On the morning of Feb. 17, Arline Katherine Turkington, loving daughter, sibling, twin, wife, mother, grandmother and great-grandmother, died at the age of 99. Born to Margaret and Arthur Steffes in Winona, MN, she there met and married her husband of 71 years, Donald Wesley Turkington in 1946. Settling in Minneapolis, they raised two children, Leslie and Scott. Not a year of her adult life was spent without a committed spirit of volunteerism, serving variously the War Memorial Blood Bank (now Memorial Blood Center), General Hospital (now HCMC), Methodist Hospital, the Holy Family Catholic Church Blood Drive, the founding of the St. Louis Park Public Library, STEP (St Louis Park Emergency Program) and many political and neighborhood campaigns. A great lover of music, she and Don were constant concert goers to the Minnesota Orchestra, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Jazz venues and outdoor band concerts, raising their children with a deep love of music, history and the arts. Preceded in death by her brothers Arthur and Eugene, and her husband Don, she is survived by her two children, Leslie and Scott, grandchildren Alexander and Stephanie, and great-granddaughter Lucy. A Mass of Christian Burial will be offered on Thurs., Feb. 24, 10am, at Holy Family Catholic Church, 5900 W. Lake St., St Louis Park. In remembrance of Arline’s work, the family asks that any charitable donations be made to STEP (STEPSLP.org).