Obituary of Norma Joy Fulton

FULTON, Norma Joy
October 30, 1931 – August 7, 2020

Norma quietly slipped away on August 7 at Saskatoon’s St. Paul’s Hospital in the company of her husband, Fred, of 66 years, and her son Glen. It was fitting that St. Paul’s was where she spent her last few days, since it was here that she did her practicum as a nurse, a vocation that played a prominent role in her life. Born in Kenaston, Saskatchewan, Norma grew up on a farm in the “Hill Country” 14 miles east of town. The daughter of Alex and Gladys (Paxman) Evans, Norma attended Chatham one-room school before finishing high school in Kenaston. Moving to Saskatoon to start university, she completed her Bachelor in Nursing at the University of Saskatchewan in 1953. She and Fred met on the steps of the Thorvaldson Building on the way to the Agro Wiener Roast in Devil’s Dip. They were married on July 10, 1954. Always willing to strike new paths, Norma in her quiet but determined way would break with the norms: she juggled a dual farm/city lifestyle between Kincaid and Saskatoon; she did not stop working once her children were born (for several summers she joined the nursing staff at the Kincaid hospital in what was one of her first jobs); she would continue working in Saskatoon while Fred was farming at Kincaid in the summer; she would push for greater integration of the work of doctors and nurses; and she would be an early adopter and enthusiastic proponent of continuing professional education when such practices were not yet common. After receiving her Masters degree in Continuing Education in 1971, Norma joined the faculty of the College of Nursing at the University of Saskatchewan and went on to become the Director of Continuing Nursing Education for the province. One of her delights was when she convinced big-name speakers from across Canada and the United States that they really needed to come to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan to speak at the conferences she had organized for the province’s nurses. Norma was a regular participant in the Order of the Eastern Star and played leadership roles in Grosvenor Park United Church and the United Church Women. She was particularly proud of her children and grandchildren; one of her real pleasures was entertaining her children’s friends at the farm with its attractions of a pool and rides on the tractor, capped off by wide-ranging conversations around the kitchen table at night. Norma is survived by her husband Fred; her children Murray (Leona Theis), Joan, Glen (Teri Courchene) and Donald; her brother Ronald (Norma) Evans; and her grandchildren Michael, Lauren, Eric and Owen. She is predeceased by her parents and her brother Ross (Elizabeth) Evans. The family would like to thank the caregivers from Nurse Next Door and the Saskatoon Health Region’s Home Care for their compassionate and loving care of Norma. In lieu of flowers a donation can be made to the Scholarship Fund in the College of Nursing at the University of Saskatchewan (https://donate.usask.ca/online/advancement.php).