Thora Nielsine (Nelle) Fuller

June 20, 1920 – July 12, 2020

Mom was born and raised till eighth grade in Wilson Creek, Washington. Her parents, Niels and Inger Johnson, were immigrants from Denmark and found their way to Wilson Creek where they lived until their passing. Growing up there was no small feat. Mom was the fourth of 10 children born of this union. Mom said that Granddad hung his pants on the bedpost and Grandma got pregnant. Mom’s last sibling, Irene Jones, was born at about the same time as my sister, Inga.

Mom was a tomboy to her account and was not afraid to take a chance on life. She was devoted to her siblings and skipped her third grade to help her sick brother with his own schoolwork. She left school at the end of the eighth grade as there was not enough money for the family to send their kids to high school, which was not unusual for that era. She went to work in the area for a wheat farmer family as a nanny and then took a job cooking for harvest crews. She shortly thereafter found a job on the west side of the mountains as a nanny for two small children. That led to another move to Tacoma to care for a young boy where she garnered the Nelle nickname. The little boy could not pronounce her name so he shortened it. It stuck.

She remained with that job until she married DeForest Preston “Huck” Fuller, whom she had met while still in Wilson Creek. He came to dinner one night with her older brother Marvin and it must have been love at first sight as they persisted across the miles they spent apart until they married on Dec. 27, 1938. I have the love letters that memorialized their love for each other. They moved to their first home in Blanchard, Idaho, where Dad was working in the timber industry. Mom found work for the postmistress. They soon moved to Marble, Washington, where Dad found work in the rock quarry. It was a difficult time of life for them. They moved back to the Coville area.

It was there that my sister, Inga Ethel, was born on Jan. 5, 1940. Mom was now 20 years old and smitten with her firstborn. However, another move was in the offing. They moved to Moses Lake on Feb. 21, 1940 to a small farm owned by her sister Katherine and her husband Clifford. It was right on the lake and that became a source of much enjoyment for this young family.

Mom contracted spinal meningitis in the spring of 1943 and was separated from her family for over a month of isolation at Deaconess Hospital, Wenatchee. This was a difficult time for Mom and she tried her hardest to wipe it out of her memory. She was tough and proved it in the way she came back with a determination that served her well the remainder of her life. She was not one to let a little adversity get this stubborn Dane down. She reminded us regularly that this Danish woman was tough and resilient.

In 1945 Mom and Dad purchased 100 acres of land with a small farmhouse on it that was not far from the Lake House. This became the Fuller Family Home for the rest of their lives.

On Nov. 6, 1944, Nell Louise came along, much to Inga’s displeasure as she wanted a brother. She was a little redhead, just like her father. She inherited that redhead spirit. She had that redhead spirit and her mother’s determination. Inga finally got her way when I was born on Feb. 5, 1948. Another redhead to the family. Finally, Mom and Dad had the family of their early dreams.

Mom was Dad’s right hand in running the dairy and then the farming operation. Beets were the big deal back then and Mom was out there with Dad daily from planting till harvest. She became the talk of the beet factory as she was the only woman truck driver to deliver beets. As much as the guys tried to help her, she made sure that she carried her weight and then some. I was her constant companion on those trips from the farm to the beet dump, She taught me well during those: trips together. I have a very vivid memory of watching Mom and Dad chasing each other around the alfalfa field on their Massey Ferguson (bright red) tractors, sickle bars down, mowing alfalfa as though there was no tomorrow. This was long before the days of swathers and harrowbeds, God, they loved that time. Even though she spent all that time in the fields, she always made sure that the table was ready for lunch, while we listened to baseball. Dinner at night was a family time at the table to recount the day. For several years there was a swinging door for relatives, both sides, to stay for extended periods of time. Mom never complained, she took it in stride and never wavered from her mission: take care of Huck, family and home.

Mind you, this woman was not the typical farm wife. She was a force to be reckoned with. She was my baseball team scorekeeper for all of my short career (I get to say this first as I get to write this). She and Dad were founders of the Grange movement in Grant County and continued their involvement until the waning day of the Grange organization. Mom was the secretary for the local office, the district office for over 30 years. She, along with us kids, was very instrumental in 4-H. She made sure that all three of us worked our behinds off to succeed and earn our spot on a trip to Chicago to the National 4-H Club Congress. As part of that she was always involved in the Grant County Fair every year, not only helping us meet our obligations, but also as an exhibitor and a judge. She continued that love of involvement for many years after all of us were grown and gone,

Mom became the president of the Wool Growers Auxiliary which led to her becoming our world traveler (until Inga took that role). She traveled to Albuquerque, Phoenix, San Francisco, Portland and numerous locations in the area. She loved this new part of her life. She made sure that her daughters were part of this and that her involvement was really just an excuse to promote her two girls and their achievements, Louise placed fourth in a national competition in Albuquerque.

Her community involvement stretched from working with blood drives to working the election board — when we still had in-person voting — until that was no longer the norm, If someone needed some volunteer help, Mom was there.

We lost Louise in 1990 than her husband, Denny in 1994. Their daughter Megan, who spent many summers with her grandparents as a child, lives in Kirkland with her husband John Carpenter. Her son, Justin Bamas, is now living and working in D.C. for one of our state representatives, Cassidy Barnes, her youngest, is a student at WSU of sorts with this pandemic upon us.

Dad passed in December of 2000 and Mom remained on the farm, after Dad convinced Mom to sell most of the farming land. Mom insisted on keeping the house and the outbuildings. Mom remained there until June 2017 on her own. She had the wonderful help of one of her great neighbors, Harvey Gibson, to take care: of her, allowing her to remain there until age 97. She was always the gracious host. Did not matter the day or the time, if someone showed up at her door there was coffee, cookies or more rewarding, fresh cinnamon rolls. All of my friends, as well as Louise and Inga, called our home the best place to hang out — Mom made sure of that. She accomplished that to the day I had to make the difficult decision to move her to Wenatchee away from the farm that was her life and her love. “You are not taking me out of here except in a pine box,” she always exclaimed,

The move to Wenatchee was precipitated by Inga’s becoming terminally ill. I was able to assist Mom in making the final move here to assist with Inga and to be close to Lynne and me, to help both of them, she never returned to her beloved home, the hardest decision a child has to make for a loved one, Inga passed in August 2017 and Mom stayed at Highgate where I had been able to place both of them together. Mom fell shortly after she arrived and broke her scapula and several ribs, That did not stop her. She looked out for Inga as best she could and was a great companion for her until her death. Mom’s health was deteriorating, not enough to slow her much, so Lynne and I arranged to move her to Maple Lodge where she remained until her passing. The caregivers and Maple Lodge loved her and took exceptional care of her for 2-plus years, In her last months, Hospice was a godsend to her and to Lynne and me. They all provided her exceptional love and care. We commend both.

Mom is survived by granddaughter Megan, her husband John Carpenter and her two children Justin and Cassidy; Neil and Lynne Fuller and their two sons, Preston and Brock, as well as great-granddaughter Jayden Fuller who lives in Minneapolis as does Preston. Her youngest sister, the last of her siblings, Ilene Jones, lives on the west side.

Mom left us with a treasure trove of memories, love and inspiration. We will miss her more than we can ever express. This woman who grew up in difficult times made the best of her life and never let obstacles get in the way. She outlived so many of those that loved her.

I found so many writings in her papers that would be appropriate here that I could till up many pages; however, this one was apparently important to her as it appears numerous places:

Afterglow

I’d like the memory of me

to be a happy one.

I’d like to leave an afterglow of smiles

when the day is done.

I’d like to leave an echo

whispering softly down the ways,

of happy times and laughing times

and bright and sunny days,

I’d like the tears of those who grieve

to dry before the sun,

of happy memories that I leave behind

when the day is done.

For someday down that lonely road

you’ll hear me call your name.

Huck, you have been patiently “waiting on your woman, I am home.” God bless you Mom and rest peacefully with Dad, Louise and Inga.

Neil