Bill Fulton, age 72, of Egg Harbor Township, well known for his years working at the Ocean City Post Office and the stimulating conversations he enjoyed with the many people he met, died on December 31, 2024. In late October, Bill received a diagnosis of a cancerous stage 4 glioblastoma, an aggressive brain tumor. He faced his diagnosis daily by continuing to share his love and sense of humor with others.
He was born Jan. 24, 1952 at Doctor’s Hospital in Philadelphia, son of David Irving Fulton and Mildred Fulton. He was the younger brother of Barbara (Fulton) Harding and Lois Fulton. He graduated from William Penn Charter in 1969 and then the University of Wisconsin class of 1974.
Bill worked at the Ocean City Post Office from 1980 until his retirement in 2018.
A voracious reader, Bill was known for his great sense of humor and riding his bike 5,000 miles a year, often ringing his bell as he rode through Ocean City. He was known in Ocean City for his kindness; during his years at the Post Office he seemed to know everyone and took genuine interest in others’ lives. An avid bicyclist who did the OCNJ Triathlon through the 1990s, he participated in bicycle events including the Tour De Tuckahoe and the New York City Five-Borough Bike Tour. Bill always encouraged people to wear helmets when riding their bikes.
Bill lived an active lifestyle. In addition to riding his bike, he golfed three times a week, enjoyed sailing his Hobie Cat, kayaking and canoeing in places including Lake Lenape and Bargaintown Lake, and swam at the Mainland Recreation Association (MRA) swim club. He would also donate blood whenever possible, as a faithful donor he earned a 75 gallon pin which he took pride in.
He loved adding hot sauce and hot peppers to any food, but was not a good cook. He was a total Philly sports fan; his favorite was baseball. He also rooted for Wisconsin.
Bill enjoyed the arts, attending concerts, plays and Broadway shows, and participating with his wife in book clubs for many years. He read all the classics and was an excellent editor. As his wife noted, he knew how to use every picky piece of punctuation. He volunteered at the Apple Farm and the Philadelphia Folk Festival for many years and enjoyed being a driver for performers.
He liked the Beatles, Classic Rock and folk. His favorite group was the Grateful Dead and favorite song, “Sugar Magnolia.” He was quick at identifying song writers and performing artists, was excellent at “Jeopardy!” and Wheel of Fortune, and enjoyed participating in trivia competitions. Growing up, he was in the Boy Scouts with Todd Rundgren, the musician and songwriter with whom he remained friends. (Rundgren’s mother was their den mother.) Bill reached the rank of Eagle Scout. He built on his scouting skills, building furniture including an octagon-shaped picnic table around a large tree in his backyard without a plan. Bill fed birds from feeders above the picnic table. He fended off squirrels from that same table; the squirrels liked to steal tomatoes and produce from his garden and eat them on the table.
Bill loved traveling with his wife, Joan Vicari, who established the library at Ocean City High School and the new high school that opened in 2004, and their daughter, Laura Beth Fulton Hart (Tyler Hart).
He and his wife were married in 1995. Bill called Joan “His wife for life,” “forever wife” and the “love of his life and beyond.” Before proposing, he joined Central United Methodist Church in Linwood, where he played guitar and served as a trustee; obtained a passport and became certified in scuba diving to match his wife; and bought a better bicycle to do a road trip.
Even while in the hospital toward the end of his life, Bill maintained his sense of humor. When a nurse quizzed him on his favorite tree, he responded, “magnolia,” and when she asked his favorite flower, he replied, “Gold Medal.”
In addition to his wife and daughter, he has a son from a previous marriage, David Dylan Fulton (fiancée Breanna Eads); a grandson, Nash Fulton; a brother, the Rev. Dr. David I. Fulton; sisters Barbara Harding and Lois Fulton; two nephews, Kevin Killion (Michelle) and Matthew Killion, and niece Amy Windfelder (Joseph). Services are private.
Memorial donations may be made to the Community Foodbank of NJ (http://www.cfbnj.org – 31 Evans Terminal, Hillside, NJ 07205), Doctors Without Borders, and Amnesty International.