Kathryn M. Turman

Received the Keeping the Spirit Alive Award on December 21, 2009

Kathryn Turman introduced herself to us by saying “I’m from the Justice Department and I’m here to help.” As we found out and continue to appreciate, when Kathryn Turman says it, it is an understatement.  She and her colleagues at the Office of Victims of Crime (OVC) did everything she promised and so much more. She made arrangements for family members to attend the 2001 trial of Megrahi at Camp Zeist in the Netherlands; set up the two down-link sites complete with Scottish Constables; and arranged for the Syracuse University Law School to provide daily trial summaries and legal insights on our secure website. She provided counselors in the U.S. and at the trial; reprinted “On Eagles Wings” with many of the blanks filled in; arranged meetings in DC and Baltimore; and so much more. Kathryn didn’t stop helping when she moved to the FBI’s Victims’ Services Division. She is the ‘de facto’ contact for the families. She has provided career counselors and references to some of the younger family members. She has been a good friend to many of us.