1934-2021
Robert P. Turner, 86 of La Quinta, CA, passed away peacefully on July 14, 2021, at his home after a short illness.
Bob was born in Philadelphia, PA on November 8, 1934, son of the late Frank and Eleanor Turner. He is survived by his spouse, Carol and his daughter Traci Turner Melley and her husband, James Melley and his son R. Christopher, his siblings, John F. Turner and another brother Arthur Turner who predeceased Bob, as well as his granddaughter, Courtney Sylvander and her husband, Greg Sylvander and his great grandchildren, James Riley and Amelia Grace.
Bob graduated from Roman Catholic High School in Philadelphia, PA in 1952 and completed the General Management program at the Harvard Business school in Cambridge, MA in the early 1970’s.
After moving to the Washington DC area in the late 1950’s, Bob met his wife Carol, and they were later married in January of 1967. Bob started his career in the concrete and cement industry working in sales, for a Northern Virginia precast company in the early 1960’s. In 1965, Bob was hired as a sales engineer responsible for the Washington, DC market, by the W.R. Grace Construction Products Division which was a supplier of construction chemicals to the concrete industry and where he enjoyed a long and successful career. With W.R. Grace, Bob continued taking positions with increasing responsibility which included moves to Florida, New Jersey, Illinois and ultimately in the early 1970’s, to headquarters in Cambridge, MA. In his position in Cambridge, as Vice President and General Manager of the Construction Chemicals group, Bob was the driving force behind the explosive growth of the group from what was a small U.S. business unit, to, by the time Bob retired in 1999, a large and successful global business unit approaching a half a billion dollars in sales. At W.R. Grace, Bob was focused on customer service and sales development and led several key initiatives including the successful customer Team One program which brought together customers in executive level programs focused on supporting business growth and the Sales Masters program, which became an annual W.R. Grace celebration program highlighting individuals who had excelled in sales performance.
Bob also worked tirelessly and passionately within the concrete industry giving much of his time to supporting the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association both during his career at W.R. Grace, and for many years after he retired. Over that time, Bob was one of the key leaders behind such important industry initiatives as the RMC 2000 program and the Concrete Industry Management program. Bob was also the first chairman of the NRMCA Materials Division which organized supplier companies to support important industry initiatives. In 1999, Bob was the first recipient of the NRMCA Chairman’s Award for extraordinary service and dedication to the concrete industry. In 2007, Bob was elected as a Lifetime Honorary Member of the NRMCA Board of Directors. As a highlight and a wonderful example of Bob’s legendary industry relationships and passion for the concrete industry, Bob along with several other industry leaders, traveled extensively to promote and to raise funds for the development of the RMC Research & Education Foundation. Initially Bob and the group raised over $10 million dollars in the early 2000’s and then led another effort in the mid 2000’s, raising $10 million dollars more to further support important concrete industry research programs. Furthermore in 2019 a Materials Division excellence award was created in his name along with an industry peer.
Bob’s success with developing personal relationships emanated from his focus on others, his personal kindness, his impressive list of contacts, his mentorship and genuine support for his colleagues at W.R. Grace and his obvious love for the concrete industry he served. He was also very generous with his personal time and had a reputation of helping counsel anyone who asked. In addition, Bob was renowned for his attention to detail during the W.R. Grace customer events, where his choice of restaurant, selection of wine, entertainment and seating arrangements were always incredibly special, making sure that the event itself was considered first class by each of the guests. Over the years, the Bob Turner sponsored events were considered by many of the invited customer executives and their spouses, as “can’t miss” events.
Growing up in Philadelphia, Bob spent many enjoyable summer vacations in Cape May, NJ. After retirement, Bob and Carol enjoyed hosting friends and family in their homes in La Quinta and in the mountains of North Carolina. He enjoyed golf, travel and was an avid dog lover. His dogs included Susie, Ike, Lucy, Brandy, Leo, Cinnamon and Lucky.
The family is planning a private service. In lieu of sending flowers, the family has asked that donations be made in memory of Robert P. Turner to the RMC Research & Education Foundation, 66 Canal Center Plaza, Suite 250, Alexandria, VA 22314 or can be sent secure online to www.rmc-foundation.org/contribute and denote in the comment section “In Memory of Robert P. Turner”.