Millie Turner

As a volunteer through Master Gardeners and the University of California Riverside Botanic Gardens, I lecture on herbs, wildlife habitats, and edible flowers often providing refreshments such as lavender lemonade and tuna salad stuffed nasturtiums. My handmade quilts (appliqué and foundation piecing) decorate my home and walls of the Technical Services Dept. of the UCR Library where I am still cataloging books after 25 years as a Library Assistant. I follow horse racing, enjoy photography and travel, although my husband, Sam, has toured 95 countries mostly without me. Last year my essay, “Stuart Finds a Home”, about my orange cat, won first prize ($40 Target certificate) in the “Art for the Animals” competition sponsored by the Western Riverside Shelter. Entries were auctioned off to raise funds for homeless pets. My anniversary of Nov. 9, is the day I stepped onto a Continental Trailways bus and left for California at age 19. My new name, Jean, came about when a friend misread my middle name, Jane, on my birth certificate. I never corrected him and have been “Jean” ever since!