Page Turner is known for her no-nonsense approach on HGTV’s “Fix My Flip,” and while there’s no question that her professional expertise has a lot to do with that, she also developed that sense of tough love as a result of some of the storms she’s had to weather in her life. Between loss, bad breakups, and the challenges of single motherhood, she’s been through a lot over the years.
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We’ll start with her father’s passing. Decades before becoming an HGTV star, Page was already rubbing shoulders with some very famous people, thanks to her highly sought-after optician parents, who made glasses for Sammy Davis Jr. and Dionne Warwick, among others. Sadly, her dad Eugene Turner died of liver illness when she was just 8 years old. Because of how high-profile he was, members of the press arrived at the funeral, and in a 2019 Instagram post, Page shared the picture that had been taken of her en route to it. “The #paparazzi had to get a pic of me crying on my mom’s lap in the limo,” she shared in the caption, including a picture of the newspaper clipping in her post.
Over the years, Page has spoken a lot about losing her dad at such a young age. In one Father’s Day post on Instagram, she gushed, “There’s something sooooo special to be able to say that ‘I’m a daddy’s girl … ‘ Even though I was 8 the last time he could hold me, he set the standard & I still remember.” In another, she shared that even with him gone physically, she never doubted his continued presence in her life. “I can feel him all around me and I know that much of my strength comes from him,” she wrote. Talk about a beautiful legacy to leave behind.
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Page Turner raised her daughters as a single mom
Given just how close Page Turner was with her own dad, it’s pretty devastating knowing her daughters don’t have the same dynamic with their own father. In fact, Page seemed to reference that in one of her Instagram Father’s Day posts, which she summed up with some serious tough love. After her note about loving being able to refer to herself as a daddy’s girl, she continued, “If your daughter can’t say that about you, you dropped the ball. Pick it up & make it right … Every daughter deserves to be a daddy’s girl.”
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Though Page didn’t specifically mention her daughter’s father in that particular post, she has spoken about his total lack of presence in their children’s lives on more than one occasion. In a 2019 Instagram video about finding the courage to do anything she set her mind to, she discussed the fear she had as a young single mom, including the realization she’d have to figure out a way forward without child support. In a 2023 interview with Yahoo! Life, she reiterated that, telling the outlet, “[I] never got a dime in child support.” She also added an even sadder detail. “I don’t even know where that man is, to tell you the truth,” she said.
Of course, it does bear mentioning that even without her daughter’s father in the picture, she did have her village. In addition to her mom Patricia Turner moving in with her and her daughters, she told Yahoo! she also had a number of great friends who showed up for her and the kids. “It was really like all hands on deck with my kids. I was so blessed, even in my low times,” she said.
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Page wishes she could have been a softer mom
Even with her village stepping in where they could, Page Turner was still a single mom to three children, and she told Yahoo! Life that because she was outnumbered, she was often very strict. “I felt like I had to be a soldier because there were three of them and I had to make sure that they knew who’s boss. And number two, just to keep everything in line,” she explained. Page added, “I was a helicopter mom and I was super controlling.” With that in mind, she said there were times she wished she could have a do-over. “Looking back, I would be a different mom,” she mused.
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It bears mentioning that even with her outrageous child support situation and no co-parent, Page made it work, and she and her daughters seem to be exceptionally close today. She’s also gushed over how proud she is of all of their accomplishments, writing in one Instagram post, “Chain-breakers. Faith-makers. They’re definitely doubletakers, with their fine, brilliant selves, lol (pats myself on back).”
Another aspect of motherhood Page is proud of, looking back? The fact that her eldest child was just two years older than her twins meant she had to get resourceful — and that, she did. “Three homecomings, three driver’s licenses, three proms, three birthday parties at the same time, it was crazy. But you know, I’m a big believer in vision and written plans. And anything we wanted, I never said, ‘We can’t have it. We can’t afford it.’ I just said we’d have to structure, plan and work for it,” she recounted to Yahoo!. Kids aside, there was another benefit in that: Page put her newfound ability to adapt to work in her career.
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Page had a tough breakup from her co-star DeRon Jenkins
It’s well-known that Page Turner and DeRon Jenkins were once a couple — and even though a ton of HGTV shows are fake, their on-screen chemistry certainly wouldn’t suggest the breakup was a painful one. Sure enough, though, both of them have spoken about the aftermath of their relationship being tough.
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Speaking to Us Weekly in 2018, Page explained that even though her and Jenkins’ relationship hadn’t ended after a massive fight, they had needed to heal from everything. “We needed a break for a couple of years. Then we were like, ‘All right — we good,'” Page told the outlet. It was a sentiment she and Jenkins shared with People in 2019, too. In that interview, they hinted at the split being a lot harder for both of them than they’d previously let on, with Page referring to it as “the traumatic breakup.” However, later on in the interview, she did share that it being traumatizing may have been par for the course. “Are there ever really any good breakups?” she mused. Fair enough!
Trauma aside, it’s safe to say the exes managed to move past it. Part of that, Jenkins told Us Weekly, came down to the fact that in addition to still being friends, they knew they would continue working well together, even post-breakup. “We feel like we both are at the top of our craft. We work well together as far as trusting. I know what she’s gonna do, she knows what I’m gonna do. Our expectations of each other are very realistic. We make it work,” he explained. Honestly, we love to see it — and although we count the traumatic aspect as a “sad” detail, it’s pretty clear everything worked out for the best.
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Page opened up about her first love’s passing
DeRon Jenkins isn’t the only ex Page Turner has remained friends with over the years. On the contrary, in 2023, she shared that she’d stayed close with her first love as well. Heartbreakingly, though, Jakim Stewart passed away as a result of cancer.
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Page took to Instagram to share a sweet video montage of pictures and videos of her and Stewart over the years to commemorate her friend’s tragic passing. “I will never forget your laugh & your smile and how first loves became forever friends (even through the times I had to pull up to Westchester High in my uniform in a fury),” she wrote in the caption. Page also shared that they had stayed close enough for annual birthday phone calls and included a screenshot of the last call they’d shared, which took place just a week prior to his death. “I will never forget our most beautiful conversation last week, that was also our last. The laughs, the tears, so many memories visited in just 39 minutes,” Page wrote.
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Page ended her tribute by sending heartfelt condolences to Stewart’s family. “Prayers & love for your beautiful sons, mommy, sister, the little homie Jamal and your amazing wife, Tia. They will always be in my thoughts & prayers,” she said.
Page’s mom was diagnosed with cancer
Sadly, cancer also affected another important person in Page Turner’s life. As she shared in an emotional Instagram post in May 2021, her mom Patricia Turner — whom she regularly refers to on Instagram as “Nana Pat” — was diagnosed with breast cancer. She made the announcement while asking her fans and followers to pray for her mom’s health. “Please pray for Nana Pat as she faces her complete healing from a mastectomy, chemo and a VICTORIOUS breast cancer defeat,” she asked in the caption.
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Thankfully, the HGTV star shared a very happy update on Instagram a few months later. “We all prayed for my mama and healing from breast cancer just a couple of months ago (thank you all!) and it is with overwhelming gratefulness and joy to you all for your prayers and to my great God that Nana Pat is … CANCER FREE!!!!!” she wrote.
A day after that post, Page returned with another, thanking everyone for their kind words and giving her mom major props for inspiring her to keep pushing through all the challenges she faced in life. “She taught me to never give up and fight through and fight on, come what may. To take deep breaths and trust the process, despite when the process is kicking your a$$,” she wrote. There’s no question that Page has followed in her mom’s footsteps, and something tells us that even with her own strictness as a mom, her daughters likely will, as well. Page may have faced a ton of sadness in her life, but through it all, she’s also been surrounded by an abundance of love, and that certainly comes across to her fans, whether they’re watching her on HGTV or simply scrolling through her Instagram.
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