Passed away on Sunday, January 28 th , 2024. Predeceased by his wife, Marilyn (nee Weatherburn) Fulton.
Donald – always Donnie to his friends -- was born in Stratford, Ontario in 1935. His family had origins in Nova Scotia and Ontario, which can be traced to United Empire Loyalists. He grew up in southern Ontario, where, as a young lad, he kept bees, winning a prize at the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) for the high quality of his honey.
In the 1950s, he attended Haileybury School of Mines, and then Michigan Technological University in Houghton, Michigan to become a professional engineer, with a specialization in mining engineering. During this period, he also worked as a mining engineer in Elliot Lake and Sudbury. After finishing his studies, he continued working as a mining engineer in places, such as Arizona and northern Canada, honing his language skills in French and Inuit languages along the way.
He became a high school teacher in the 1960s, teaching sciences at Bruce Mines High School, and then at Central Algoma Secondary School in Desbarats. Long after retirement in 1993, he often spoke proudly and passionately of the achievements of his students as they moved from his classroom to success in university education and professional employment.
Committed to fostering education, he was dedicated to the Ontario Professional Engineers Foundation for Education, which helps students train to become engineers. His unwavering belief in people led him to join and take part in local organizations, including the Masons, Scottish Rite, and Eastern Star, as well as the Odd Fellows, participating in every aspect of these organizations, from embracing leadership roles to helping to run Bingo evenings and cooking turkeys for community dinners. A keen photographer, he enjoyed taking pictures of natural settings; he served as photographer at many weddings in the local community.
He is known for always taking time to help others, whether plowing his neighbours’ driveways in winter months, sharing his garden space, vegetables, and recipes following a Mediterranean diet, or fixing various broken items brought to him. He contributed to re-establishing the voyageur trails in the area. During Covid, he drew upon his childhood recollections of the polio epidemic to predict steps in community recovery to help others feel calm as the pandemic continued.
He is forever missed by his daughters Crystal (Alan) and Holly (Stéphane), and grandchildren Julie and Nick.
His family wish to thank his friends for their kind support of Donnie over the years, as well as Bayshore nurses Amy and Jessica, and the various health specialists who saw beyond a single issue to the well-being of the whole individual. It takes a community to care for our elders.
Donations in memory of Donald S. Fulton may be made to any of his favoured charities, including importantly:
ARCH Hospice, 229 Fourth Line W, Sault Ste. Marie, ON P6A 0B5
Ontario Professional Engineers Foundation for Education, https://engineersfoundation.ca/
Tracy’s Dream, Sault Ste. Marie, ON, http://www.tracysdream.com/