Fullerton, Lorraine (Vida) -- 1957 - 2006

VIDA, FULLERTON, DAHL, DIEDRICH, NICHOLSON, WOOD

Posted By: Volunteer
Date: 9/14/2006 at 09:32:04

Lorraine Fullerton

August 29, 1957 - August 12, 2006

Lorraine Fullerton, age 48, of Decorah, Iowa, died on Saturday, August 12, 2006, in an automobile accident near Lansing, Iowa.
A celebration of Lorraine's life will be held at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, August 17, 2006, at the Fullerton Home, 208 Leif Erickson Drive, Decorah, Iowa. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be given in memory of Lorraine to P.A.W., or the Lorraine Fullerton Scholarship Fund, c/o The Fullerton Family, 208 Leif Erickson Drive, Decorah, IA 52101.

Meeting Lorraine, you knew in a few seconds how compassionate, intelligent, adventurous, and comical she was - for Lorraine Vida Fullerton was a rare woman of spirit!

The daughter of John and Virginia Vida, Lorraine graduated from Sycamore High School in Sycamore, Illinois, in 1975. She attended the University of Iowa College of Pharmacy and met her husband-to-be, Stan Fullerton, there. She graduated with a B.S. in Pharmacy in 1981.

Lorraine was also a woman of the river. After graduation, Lorraine and Stan moved to the Mississippi River-first to McGregor, then to Marquette, Iowa-because Lorraine said she wanted to look at the river and read Mark Twain. Lorraine's love for the river ran deep, but during the early 1980s, in addition to becoming a River Rat and reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, she was a pharmacist at the Guttenberg Hospital and a relief pharmacist in towns throughout the area-for caring was an aspect of her nature she had to express.

In 1987, Lorraine and Stan moved to Decorah, Iowa, and in 1991 Lorraine became co-owner with Stan of Donlon Pharmacy. Here she touched the lives and hearts of countless clients, and she dealt with everyone's needs, great or small, with the same intelligence, understanding, and patience. She also shared her insight and spirit with the broader Decorah community, serving on the Parks and Recreation Board, the Oneota Community Food Co-op Board, and as president of the P.T.A. Lorraine's children-Royce, Lauren, and Alice-gave her unsurpassable joy, and in return she shared with them, and with everyone she knew, her love of animals (especially dogs), cooking, kitsch, and dressing for the occasion.

Beauty was something Lorraine both appreciated and fostered. She and Stan donated the money for the creation of the butterfly garden at Decorah's City Prairie. Particularly lovely at this time of year, it is a perfect and tranquil spot to sit and remember Lorraine.

Lorraine used to say that, when she died, she wanted no sadness. She wanted an Irish wake. She wanted Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" and Iron Butterfly's "Inna Godda Davida" played at her service. And she wanted her ashes scattered in her beloved Mississippi River near the Marquette bridge.

A woman of spirit and the river.

Lorraine is survived by her three children, Royce John Fullerton, Lauren Vida Fullerton, and Alice Rochelle Fullerton, all students at the University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, and their father, Stan Fullerton, of Decorah, IA; her parents, John and Virginia Vida, Sycamore, IL; three sisters, Lauretta (Keven) Dahl, Sycamore, IL, Lynnette (Steve) Diedrich, Gratiot, WI, and Paulette (Paul) Nicholson, Streator, IL; one brother, Ed (Marianne) Vida, Grand Forks, ND; and her dogs, Iris, Honey, Laverne, and Marley; nieces and nephews: Jennifer, Rebecca, Angeline, Katherine and Erik Diedrich; Kiersten Nicholson; Brandi Wood and Scott Vida.

Lorraine was preceded in death by her grandparents and her beloved dogs, Dixie and Toots.

To know Lorraine was to love her. Her family and friends will miss her sparkling wit, her laugh and her compassion for everyone—two-legged and four-legged.

Schluter-Balik Funeral Home, Decorah, Iowa