Since being crowned Ms. Senior D.C. this past summer, Cerise Turner has maintained great fidelity to her responsibility as an ambassador to more than 110,000 senior District residents.
In her role, she has appeared at numerous events throughout the city and established ties with AARP, Office of the Chief Technology Officer, United Healthcare, and the D.C. Office of the Attorney General, among other entities.
As she prepares to compete nationally at the Ms. Senior America Pageant, Turner continues to advance a cause that’s near and dear to her heart: narrowing the digital divide that has placed many of her fellow seniors on the margins of society and made them prime targets for fraud and scams.
“Different government agencies and entities are using artificial intelligence to determine what society needs and seniors are being left out of that picture because they have less access to technology or they’re not using it as much as other groups,” Turner, 66, told The Informer.
A recent National Institute of Health report that highlighted a similar situation in another U.S. city found that elderly people lacking computer literacy will be left behind as telemedicine increasingly becomes normalized. According to the report, this will exacerbate disparities due to elders’ inability to access tablets and other digital conduits of up-to-date health information.
That’s why Turner said she wants to help District seniors become more knowledgeable and adaptive to modern-day technology. She expressed a desire to keep them involved in their communities and aware of the scams, fraud, financial exploitation and artificial intelligence schemes that have caused seniors across the U.S. to lose billions of dollars.
“I promote more tech training so seniors can be included and considered,” Turner continued.
“I’m also thinking about promoting assistive technology devices. There are so many ways to use it, whether it’s hands on or voice activated. Seniors need to be informed. This helps them age in place longer,” Turner added, acknowledging the Bowser administration’s ongoing efforts to help District seniors.
In June, Turner clinched the first-place spot at the 2023 Ms. Senior D.C. Pageant at the University of the District of Columbia in Northwest. Valerie Robinson, Kadija Ash, and Annette Bush took the first runner-up, second runner-up, and third runner-up title, respectively.
For the talent portion, Turner performed her stand-up comedy routine, titled “Funding Humor in the Dating Game: A Senior’s Story.”
Her road to the crown and sash, however, has been anything but funny.
In 2022, Turner first entered the Ms. Senior D.C. Pageant at the behest of pageant director Stacie Mack, who she befriended while leaving an exercise class at Model Cities Senior Wellness Center in Northeast. At that time, Turner had been frequently visiting that facility, and Hattie Holmes Senior Wellness Center in Northwest, as a means of escape from boredom and isolation that retirement brought on during the pandemic.
After months of preparation and mentorship from civil rights activist Shirley Rivins Smith, Turner rose to first runner-up that year.
Over the course of the next year, Turner started preparing for the national pageant as a member of the Queen’s Court. She appeared alongside Vene’ Le Gon, Ms. Senior D.C. 2022. As Turner explained to The Informer, that experience allowed her to accompany Le Gon to different events, and even stand in Le Gon’s place when she couldn’t attend speaking engagements.
In the weeks leading up to her first-place victory in June, Turner consistently met with her coach, Ms. Senior D.C. 2010 Sheila Poole and relied on much of what she learned as a member of the queen’s court.
She said that level of immersion in the pageant world prepared her for the rigor of the competition at the local level.
On Oct. 16-19, Turner will showcase her talents, poise, grace and elegance once again at Tropicana Casino & Resort in Atlantic City, New Jersey when she stands among more than 40 contestants at the Ms. Senior America Pageant.
In addition to the talent portion, the competition includes an interview with the judges, an evening gown portion and a segment during which each contestant presents a “Philosophy of Life” statement. Turner expressed excitement about not only going to the national level on the second go-around, but entering a new chapter in her life.
“I needed something meaningful and purposeful to do,” Turner said. “It has been a transformational experience and I was able to reinvent myself. I discovered things about me I never knew existed. I met contestants from all walks of life and experiences. I developed relationships with so many fabulous, ambitious, intelligent women.”
Turner, a fourth-generation Washingtonian and mother of twin millennial IT professionals who are District homeowners, retired after 32 years in the legal field.
At the end of her career, Turner served as an executive legal assistant at Sullivan and Cromwell LLP, a firm dealing with finance, international investment and trade, along with matters relevant to D.C.’s legal, business, government and civic communities.
Turner, an alumna of UDC and what’s now known as Jackson-Reed High School, has also worked at Washington Hospital Center and the American Bankers Association.
In years past, Turner encouraged her daughters to pursue careers in the information technology field. She told The Informer that embraces the opportunity to walk a similar path in her advocacy for seniors who don’t know their way around the latest technology.
Turner said she owes that chance to the Ms. Senior D.C. Pageant.
“This is your opportunity to be the person God meant for you to be,” Turner said in her message to seniors thinking about entering the pageant “There’s a wonderful comradery among the other contestants because we support and uplift each other. It’s a healthy and supportive environment. Their families will be proud of them and they will be proud of themselves.”
