Geoffrey Alan “Al” Turnbull died Nov. 21, 2010, in Santa Barbara.

His wife of 53 years, Harriet, preceded him in death in December 1998. He is survived by his three sons: Patrick, Geoffrey and Gerry.

Born Nov. 29, 1918, in Saskatoon, Saskachewan, Canada, Turnbull grew up in Pasadena after immigrating to the United States with his family in 1922. He attended Cal State University at Fresno, but was unable to complete his studies before the outbreak of World War II.

Turnbull volunteered for military service in the U.S. Navy in 1942, and was accepted into Naval Flight School. After training, he was assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Bunker Hill, where he served two deployments in the South Pacific theater as a torpedo bomber pilot.

His assignments there proved his metal as a charmed survivor, enduring action at Iwo Jima, as well as the documented Kamikaze attacks that crippled his ship. Fortunately, during this attack, he made it to the flight deck and was able to leap into the sea and commandeer a life raft. He was alone at sea for several hours until the destroyer USS Sullivan picked him up. He received the Navy Cross for participating in Squadron 94’s April 7, 1945, sinking of the Japanese Navy’s flagship, the battleship Yamamoto.

After discharge from service in 1946, Turnbull married Harriet and moved to South Gate, a suburb in Los Angeles, where they raised their four sons. During his life there, he lost his oldest son, Michael, to testicular cancer in August 1967.

Turnbull first joined the Optimist Club in South Gate. Initially, he went into the field of business, and owned and managed a paint and hardware store in Huntington Park before returning to school late in life, completing his education at Cal State Los Angeles in 1969. He retired from Pasadena City College as administrator of the Business Education Department’s extended day division.

In 1980, Turnbull bought a retirement home in Goleta, which he rented out until moving into it in 1988. After moving to Goleta, he joined the Board of Directors of Goleta Valley Beautiful and the Goleta Breakfast Optimist Club, and was a charter member of the UCSB Optimist Club. Turnbull was instrumental in the planting of trees and gardens at Goleta Valley elementary schools, teaching young children the importance of tending to plants and seeing them grow.

In 1989, Turnbull secured permission to plant 90 California coastal live oak honor trees in a one-acre grove within the Lake Los Carneros Preserve. He helped plant, then oversaw their care for more than 20 years. On April 8, 2009, the Goleta City Council formally named it the Al Turnbull Grove in his honor.

When his wife passed away, Turnbull moved into Friendship Manor in Isla Vista. In addition to his very active civic involvement, he enjoyed playing golf weekly, and traveled as much as time would allow. In true hero fashion, part of his travels included visiting Japan, meeting and bonding with some of the members of the military he fought so bravely against 50 years earlier.

The Goleta Valley Chamber of Commerce selected Turnbull as the Goleta Man of the Year in 2000. He was always upbeat in all of his relationships, living the Optimist creed daily. He was an inspiration to many, and a true hero of the 20th century.

The Neptune Society is caring for his remains. A memorial celebrating Turnbull’s life will be held at 3 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 2 at Jameson Hall in Friendship Manor, 6647 El Colegio Road in Isla Vista. In lieu of flowers, donations in Turnbull’s memory can be made to Goleta Valley Beautiful, or to the Goleta Breakfast or or UCSB optimist clubs.