Lula Mae Fulton was born to Joseph and Ina Boggs in Spokane on Thursday, May 29, 1941. Lula passed away unexpectedly in Seattle on Monday, April 25, 2016, at the age of 74.
As Lula was growing up, she knew early on that she wanted to be a mother. In the chicken coop on the family farm, she would use the nests as cradles for her dolls to sleep. Lula was one of five siblings, all girls, including a set of twins.
Lula and the father of her girls, George Fulton, were high school sweethearts. They picked strawberries together and went on many motorcycle rides through their years at South Salem High School in Salem, Ore. Lula graduated in 1959. She and George eventually moved to Falls City, Ore.
While Lula and George lived in Fall City, they raised their girls, Raneé and Brenda. Lula was in her element. She was a mother. She could nurture, cook her magnificent pot roast with mashed potatoes and buttered corn and/or green beans, garden, craft intricate ceramics of all shapes and sizes, bake “best- ever cookies” (chocolate chip with coconut and walnuts), prepare cheesecake for Raneé’s birthday, and extra fancy cupcakes for Brenda to take to school. She had a way of making the wrapping more decadent than the gift.
After the girls went off to college and began their adult lives, Lula worked for Columbia Memorial Hospital in Astoria, Ore., for a number of years. During this time, she perfected her gardening skills and created immaculate flowerbeds. Lula liked the smell of lilacs and she appreciated the color and precision of tulips and daffodils. She constructed birdbaths with floating glass globes and placed stepping stones to beautify her lovely garden.
Lula retired when she was 70 and moved to Oak Harbor to be near her daughter Raneé and some of her grandchildren. She made trips to the Puyallup area to see Brenda and family and to help with Brenda’s farm and garden.
Those surviving Lula are her daughters, Raneé (Steven) Bristow, of Oak Harbor, and Brenda (John) Music, of Roy; her sisters, Shirley Coffelt of Dallas, Ore., and Marvel Fossholm-Wagner (Wally Wagner) of Salem, Ore.; and numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Preceding Lula in death are her parents, Joseph (Ina) Boggs; both her sister Selva and brother-in-law Wayne Hadley of Silverton, Ore.; and her sister Velva Boggs and brother-in-law Darrell Coffelt of Dallas, Ore.
The family suggests memorials may be made to Spirit 105.3 FM, 19319 Fremont Ave. N, Seattle, WA 98133 Attention: Lula Fulton Memorial.
There will be a visitation for Lula from 6-8 p.m. Thursday, May 5, at Wallin Funeral Home in Oak Harbor. A memorial service will take place at noon on Friday, May 6, with Pastor Les Dams presiding. There will be a reception after the memorial service at Lula’s home.
Arrangements are entrusted to Wallin Funeral Home in Oak Harbor. Please visit Lula’s page in the Book of Memories online at www.wallinfuneralhome.com to share memories and condolences.
