“And I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom, that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God.” (Mosiah 2:17)
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This is truly a story of service to God. It is one without a beginning. It has no end. And though one might think September 16, 1917 to be a logical starting point, such would leave so much untold. So let’s begin in the year 1881 with one Alma Moroni Hunt and his wife Rosetta. This couple loved the Lord dearly. It was in God they trusted, when they came to this valley (Pine, AZ), to carve a life from a harsh wilderness. With a few other stalwart Mormon families, they cleared the land, planted crops, and built homes. Alma and Rosetta had a host of children, including a fine son named Isaac.
Isaac was raised in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. And so it was as a young man, having a testimony of Jesus Christ, Isaac answered the call from a prophet of God to spread the Gospel. He and a companion traveled by Horseback to Flagstaff, and then by train to San Francisco, where they obtained passage on a freighter, bound for the Society Islands in the Pacific. On these Islands he served the Lord for nearly four years.
A missionary companion, Elder Poulter from Ogden Utah, one day received a letter from home with photographs of his sisters. Upon viewing his companion’s pictures, Elder Hunt found one of the young ladies to be particularly attractive. Upon finishing his mission, Elder Hunt traveled to Salt Lake City to give an account to Church leaders, and then traveled to nearby Ogden to meet Elder Poulter’s family. There he met Florence face to face. After returning home to Arizona, Isaac went back to Ogden to court Florence and win her heart in matrimony. The two of them came to Pine to start their life together. Here they built a small home on the family homestead.
The couple was first blessed with a son, whom they named Burton, and then four years later, on September 16, 1917, a beautiful baby girl, whom they named Lois. She was born in the same house which she enjoyed retirement in more than sixty years later. The home offered every convenience that a young lady hoped for: a stone fireplace for heat and kerosene lamps. If there was running water, it was in the ditch out front. The bathroom was small, about 50 paces to the south. Travel was by walking, horseback, or wagon.
Lois’ childhood was full of good times. There were aunts and uncles and a slew of cousins to play with. There was the large red rooster in the barnyard that was quite aggressive and terrified her when he chased her. Brother, Burton was a good companion and lots of fun, though sometimes he acted like the boy that he was, like the time he brought Lois to clausterphobic hysterics by rolling her up tightly in a large rug and refusing to let her out.
More brothers and sisters were to follow. The first was Isaac, who brought a flood of tears to the family when he was stillborn. When Lois was seven a baby sister was born, whom her mother named Ruby. Four years later Lois was blessed with yet another sister, Enid. And finally, a baby sister named Rachel, who sadly only lived but a few hours.
When Lois was only fourteen, tragedy struck her happy home. Her Dad was miles away working on his ranch. Lois was home with her mother and sisters when her mother was struck suddenly and very seriously ill. Lois’ seven-year old sister Ruby was sent to town for help. With her heart pounding wildly, running so fast it seemed her feet hardly touched the ground, Ruby raced down the lane into town crying for help. But before help could arrive, while she was tended by her beloved daughter Lois, the children’s mother passed away. Thus, at the tender age of 14, Lois became the woman of the house, and in many respects mother to her two little sisters, the youngest, Enid, being only two and a half years old. With this immense responsibility, Lois learned to serve the Lord, for
“…when ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God.”
The girl’s mother had a widowed sister, Aunt Ina, who made extended visits from Utah to help out. In time their dad married her. Aunt Ina was certainly not a stepmother. She was far more than an aunt. She was a second mother which helped fill the void left by their first.
As a teenager Lois attended High School in Pine. During her senior year, she and her classmates pulled a Halloween prank by rounding up virtually every cow in town and corralled them in the school yard. And if that wasn’t enough, outhouses were appropriated, with one of them being strategically placed on the school house roof.
For graduation, Lois’s parents took her to Mesa to buy a beautiful new dress. It was a soft peach color with a large organdy collar, ruffles, and v-cut in the back. Lois had never had a dress so beautiful. She wore it to graduation, which was held in the old church down town. When she walked down the aisle to get her diploma, she stood tall, slender and stately. Her family was proud.
Shortly after graduation, Lois found herself head-over-heels in love with a handsome young man. His given name was Loren, but family and friends all knew him as Poke. Poke Fuller and Lois eloped to Flagstaff and shortly thereafter moved to Jerome. It was there that the couple’s first of eight children was born, Leon. On occasion Lois’s little sisters, whom she loved dearly, would visit. This was a happy time of life, being young and in love. Little did Lois know there were another seven children to bare.
From Jerome, the family moved back to Pine and it was here that their second son was born, whom they named Loren after his dad, but always called him by his middle name, Dennis. Three years later, Lois was blessed with a bouncing baby girl, Sharon. Over the next thirteen years the family moved eight different times, living in Millersville, McKinsley’s Mill, Heber, Hops Canyon, Pleasant Valley, Phoenix, Pleasant Valley again, and finally Prescott, which was home for over twenty years.
There are thousands of memories of these names and places. Let me share with you just a few which reflect the character of this good woman and her devotion to the Lord and her family.
In Millersville, Cherry Creek ran a short distance from their modest home. While Lois took care of household chores, some of her children played down at the creek. While working she got a very strong impression that her kids needed to come home. There was no apparent reason, but the feeling was very definite so she went outside and called. Surprisingly they actually listened to her and made their way back to the house. Unknown to any of them, there had been a cloud burst up steam which sent a high wall of water thundering down the creek bed just minutes after the children left. By heeding the promptings of the Spirit, Lois saved her children from certain death.
Of the other places which Lois and her family lived, two stand out in particular: Pleasant Valley and Prescott.
Pleasant Valley was a very small and rural community, at the end of the world some might say. Here Poke made a living in the world of timber, logging trucks, and saw mills. There were few modern conveniences in Pleasant Valley. Electric power lines wouldn’t enter this valley for another generation. In the evenings butane lamps were used. Water came from a hand pumped well out back. And no, there was no central heat.
Lack of television was indeed a blessing. Lois was an exceptional story teller. With her children gathered around, she would tell of Goldilocks or The Three Billy Goat Gruffs. She had a large repertoire of stories. She also read to them Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Finn, and other classics.
Pleasant Valley did not enjoy the luxury of a doctor or a hospital for expectant mothers. As Lois had children, she traveled to other communities to give birth. Jerry was born in Prescott, where Lois’s mother-in-law lived. Linda and Doug were born in Mesa.
The lack of conveniences in Pleasant Valley didn’t bother Lois, but the the lack of a church did. The nearest ward was in Globe, seventy miles away over a very rough and winding road. Attendance at church meetings was impossible. This was difficult for Lois. She had a strong testimony of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She desired to share that blessing with her children. So she asked her Bishop’s permission to start a primary in Pleasant Valley so her own children and others in the community could learn the things of God. She acted more or less as Primary President and was one of only two teachers. There were two other Mormon families in the area and their children joined in the weekly meetings. Many non-Mormon children in the area attended as well. They learned the Articles of Faith and heard faith-promoting stories. Lives were blessed. Some of those non-member children were to join the Church later in life. This wouldn’t have happened without the persistence of this good woman, who knew that,
“…when ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God.”
Lois also was persistent in starting a Sunday school. When her oldest son turned twelve and was ordained a deacon, and another young man in town was ordained a priest, Lois sought her bishop’s permission to hold Sunday School. They met in the school house. The two young priesthood holders blessed and passed the sacrament.
Life in Pleasant Valley may have been a bit rustic, but as time passed Lois enjoyed more modern conveniences. A traveling salesman once came through town, selling sewing machines. Lois bought one right off his truck. It was a Singer, with a foot treadle. Through the years she sewed shirts for her boys, dresses for her girls, and mended a thousand holes. It was a wise purchase, for that sewing machine lasted fifty years, and still has life in it. How exciting it was when Lois got her first refrigerator. It ran on butane. Lois often did laundry with a washtub and washboard. It was exhausting work. She felt so blessed when she got her first washing machine. It was a Maytag, powered by a two cylinder gasoline engine.
From Pleasant Valley the family moved to Phoenix for a short time. Lois’s seventh child, Jeanette was born there. There was a move back to Pleasant Valley, and then on to Prescott where Lois’s eighth and last child was born (whew!), another bouncing baby boy named Darrel.
In Prescott Lois found herself in the unfortunate position, for the most part, of raising her children by herself. These were trying times. But like her pioneer forebears who faced adversity before her, Lois demonstrated outstanding character. Through it all, her moral fiber never wore thin.
Allow me to paint a picture. Lois had always been a full time mother and homemaker. When she was pregnant with her last child circumstances forced her to go to work to provide for her children. Only a month after giving birth she went back to work. Initially she worked swing shift (3 to 11pm) at a local plastic factory, which left her kids at home, with the older ones watching the younger ones. After about a year she hired on at the Pioneers Home in Prescott, a state-run retirement home. She worked night shift, 11pm to 7am. This was a great blessing for she could be home for her kids in the evening, then go to work, and be home early enough the next morning to see them off to school. But even then, with the other children in school, she still had to watch her baby during the day. There were a number of years in which she probably averaged three hours of sleep a day.
Her pay, at least initially, was very meager, especially when one considered there was rent and utilities and eight mouths to feed. If there was anything left over for clothes or necessities, her children always came first. At one time her entire wardrobe consisted of only two dresses. Working as a nurse’s aide, she only had one white nurse’s uniform to wear to work. She washed it and hung it up to dry every day so it would be fresh.
The family’s diet was made up largely of bread. Mom made a batch of it once or twice a week, kneading it by hand then forming it into loaves. And we ate a lot of beans. But on at least one occasion we didn’t even have those. It was then, mother cut open some bean bags which she had previously made as toys for us children. The beans were cooked and her children were fed.
I’ve only began to touch on the trials which Lois endured. There were other very disruptive influences. But through it all, we never heard our mother complain. She accepted her lot in life no matter how hard. She just quietly went about serving her God, for,
“…when ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God.”
She was a proud woman. She never asked another for what she could do for herself. During struggles she never considered asking for help. During a particularly tough time, our bishop knocked on the door. He was obviously aware of our circumstances and concerned. He had a box of food in his arms, which he offered mother. She graciously accepted, and then told the bishop matter-of-factly that there must be someone who needed help worse than she, and please don’t bring any more.
Throughout these hard times, Mom stood as a pillar of strength, a shining example to her children. She was always there for us through thick and thin, good and bad. Whatever goodness we may have attained unto, whatever accomplishments we may have in life, if we possess an ounce of faith, honesty, integrity, or any other attribute favorable in the eyes of God, we owe it to our mother.
There is so much good to be remembered. A few years after moving to Prescott, there were some friends in the ward who had an old piano which they gave to mother. It was a monstrous thing, big and ugly, probably made around the turn of the century. It took eight strong men to unload it and move it into the house. It wasn’t much to look at but mother was thrilled. She hadn’t had a piano in her home since growing up. She loved to play. When she arrived home from work at 7:15 in the morning, she sat down at the piano and played some lively numbers. That was our alarm clock. When mother began playing, it was time to get out of bed and get ready for school.
Mother worked at the Pioneers Home for more than twenty years. She was a nurse’s assistant. She loved the old folks she cared for. On occasion, when one passed away, mother would come home sorrowful she had lost someone she had loved and served. And thus, even at work. Lois served the Lord, for
“…when ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God.”
Years passed. One by one her children became of age and left home. And as they did, Lois continued to serve, not only her children, but her parents. When her own father was advanced in years and suffered ill health she took time off from work to give loving assistance to him. The last few months of his life, Lois was there for him, tending and loving, which she was so good at. Likewise, several years later, she opted for early retirement so that she might come to Pine and stay with her mother (her second mother), and give her the loving help that she needed in her old age.
After her second mother passed away, Lois stayed in Pine, for it truly was home. She spent eighteen years of retirement here in this peaceful valley, in the same home in which she was born and raised. For many, retirement is a time to relax, kick back, sit in a rocking chair and watch television. But after a lifetime of serving the Lord, Lois could not break the habit. She served in the Homemakers club for years, as secretary, vice president, and president. There were projects for the community, money raised so the school or perhaps the library might have something they needed. She was active in The Daughters of Gila County Pioneers, and very deservingly was voted Woman of the Year in 1988.
Throughout her entire life she was active in Church, and served in so many capacities, for
“…when ye are in the service of your fellow beings, ye are only in the service of your God.”
She worked in the primary, Sunday school, Relief Society, even as Relief Society President. In Prescott, when money was needed to be raised for a new chapel, she made and sold bread to do her part. When working nights years ago, she served as Relief Society Pianist. On Wednesday mornings she often sat through the meeting droopy eyed at the piano for she had not slept the night before. Certainly the bishop would have understood if she had declined this calling but it wasn’t her nature to say no.
She loved music and used this gift to bless the lives of others. While working at the Pioneers Home sometimes she would go to work early or stay late so she might sit in the Lobby and play piano for the old folks. They loved it. During her years of retirement, she carried on the musical legacy of her mother here in the Pine ward. Lois’s mother was responsible for getting the first organ and piano in Pine and served as ward organist for more than a decade. She taught Lois to play. When Lois’ first mother passed away, her second mother assumed the role as ward organist and served for years. When Lois retired to Pine, she took the torch from both of her mothers and served as Pine ward organist.
If a dog is man’s best friend, then my mother was dog’s best friend. And if she had a fault, perhaps she was overly fond of cats as well.
Her work ethic and love for others was evident in the fall when the fruit trees bore. Mother felt bad if even one wormy apple went to waste. She spent long hours, along with those willing to help, bottling fruit and making apple sauce. And finally, when the work was done and her storehouse was full, she unselfishly began giving it away.
Lois has 32 grand children, beginning with Lynette and ending with Jace. There are too many to name individually, but each of you know that she loves you early. She also has 20 great grandchildren, with more on the way. You daughters and sons-in-law, you know that she loved you.
Lest you think my mother was perfect, she wasn’t, which should be obvious to anyone who had heard her call someone a “jackass”. In fact, if one was a jackass at all, they were an “old jackass”. But when it came to the things that count heavily with the Lord, she had no guilt.
Perhaps my mother’s life is best summarize by the following newspaper article that appeared in the Payson Roundup:
“Charmaine Perry of Payson nominates Lois Fuller of Pine for the Good Guy award. ----------------‘The other day, after a hot dusty day at the river with my son and our dog, I discovered that my gas gauge no longer works,’ Perry writes. ‘Needless to say, halfway back to Payson from Flowing Springs, we ran out of gas and had to walk. After a while, a lady pulled over onto a turnout ahead of us and patiently waited the 10 minutes it took us to get to her car (my son can’t go too fast – he’s only four) and offered us a ride, muddy dog and all. At first I refused because her car was very nice and clean and I didn’t want my dog to wreck the upholstery. But she insisted and drove us home, although it was out of her way and messy. We were all relieved and very grateful. Most people wouldn’t even stop, let alone give two sand-speckled people and a wet, muddy dog a ride.’ ------ “Lois you truly are a Good Guy.”
Let me close with the words of the prophet Nephi.
“For we write to persuade our children, and also our brethren to believe in God and to be reconciled to Christ, for we know that it is by grace that we are saved after all we can do.” (2Nephi 25:23)
This good woman truly did all that she could do.
I thank all of you who loved my mother and enriched her life. Thank you Monrieve for being such a good good friend. There are a host of others, some I know and others I don’t. Thank you all for rending service and love to our mother. I give thanks to my sister Linda, and other family members who lovingly cared for her the past few weeks. And above all, I thank the Lord for blessing me and my brothers and sisters with such a remarkable remarkable woman for a Mom.
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| Lois and her eight children (circa 1988) |
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Words spoken at Lois' funeral, Pine, Arizona, April 25, 1998.
