Willa Franklin

Willa O. Franklin, passionately known as “Snook” of Cincinnati, Ohio, departed this life on Tuesday, March 31, 2015 at the Hyde Park Health Center. Willa was born in Knoxville, Tennes- see on February 9, 1925 to the late William Oscar and Rannie Nichols Turner. She was the fourth of nine children. Shortly after her birth, her family moved to Cincinnati, Ohio where she attended Cincinnati Public Schools. She attended Stowe School and graduated from Hughes High School. As a young girl, Willa attended Fifth Christian Church on Kenyon Avenue in the West End.
Willa Turner married the late James L. Carmichael, Sr. and from that union, she had four children: James, Leonard, William and Carolyn. She married the late Eugene Folden and from that union she had four children: Don, Deborah, Eric and Anita. Willa had two children in her marriage to the late Joseph Franklin: Michelle and Sheila. Willa had a special love for all of her children and family.
After working at various companies in Cincinnati, Willa retired from Bethesda Hospital Medical Center on Oak Street in Avondale. Willa was an enthusiastic and devoted sports fan of the Cincinnati teams. She shared a special passion (passed down from her father) for the Cincinnati Reds. She faithfully attended the Cincinnati Bengals’ games every season for over 15 years. Willa loved listening to all genres of music with a special love for jazz, blues and gospel. Her favorite gospel song was Glory, Glory Hallelujah, since I laid my Burdens Down. She was known to sing this song with her nurses and aides, Karri, Tina and Elsie at Hyde Park Health Center. Most of all, Willa was a great jokester and enjoyed spending time laughing and making others laugh with her hilarious sense of humor.
Including her parents, Willa was preceded in death by her husbands; four of her brothers, Jethro, Spencer, Harry and Jack; her two sisters, Geraldine and Louella; and four of her 10 children, Leonard, William, Carolyn and Anita. She leaves to celebrate her life: her children, James L. Carmichael (Katherine) of Decatur, GA, Don E. Folden (Sean), Deborah J. Merritt, Eric J. Folden of Richmond, VA, Michelle M. Beamon (Arthur) and Sheila F. Smallwood (George); her two brothers, Paul C. Turner (Ruthie) and Alvin O. Turner (Kathleen); a sister-in-law, Ethel Turner; 26 grandchildren and 33 great-grandchildren; two specially adopted daughters, Denita Hall and Vila Hubbard (Greg). She also leaves to cherish joyful memories, a host of nieces, nephews, cousins and friends who loved her dearly.