Ivalee Franklin-Turner

Even as a little girl, Ivalee “Ivy” Franklin-Turner loved to dress up. 

“She could make anything beautiful,” her sister, Nancy McCall, said, recounting some of her favorite memories about Ivy after she passed away on Feb. 4. She was 85. 

She fashioned her house with a collection of stately antiques and continued her mother’s love of gardening wherever she lived, growing backyards filled with daisies as tall as your head (Remember, the Franklin women are short.), blue hydrangeas and tomatoes. In the summers, she hosted friends and family for Navajo tacos. 

Ivy was born on Aug. 28, 1939, in Norman, Okla., to Walter James and Rebecca Jane (McFarland) Franklin. As a little girl, she was observant and had an excellent memory. At age 3, she asked her parents to read aloud John 3:16, remembering that her mother once mentioned it was her favorite verse. She was raised in Norman with eight brothers and sisters and graduated from University High in 1957. 

In 1958, in search of adventure, a job and the beach, she moved west to California, where she began a decades-long career as an executive assistant. In 1985, she returned to Norman, where she was active in her church and planted a new garden that she and her sisters enjoyed for many years. 

Ivy was preceded in death by her parents; husbands; one grandson, Nicholas Hutchins; four brothers – James, Kelly, Edward and Hugh Franklin – and two sisters, Louise Dean and Maxine Johnson. 

Survivors include two sisters, Patricia “Patti” Carter and Nancy McCall both of Norman; one granddaughter, Khloe Hutchins and her mother Jenny Ball of Mustang, and numerous nieces, nephews and many other family and friends. 

Funeral services for Ivy will be held at 1:00pm Saturday, February 15, 2025 in The Chapel of Tribute Memorial Care, 4300 W Indian Hills Road, Norman, OK with Reverend Bruce Ingram officiating. Memorial contributions may be made to healthylivingnorman.com in Ivy's honor.