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In Memory of Tony Fuller 1933-2021

Tony Fuller 1933-2021

Percival Anthony Fuller, better known as Tony.  A man I knew of through our wives rather than knew but discovered that strangely we had places and people in our past that linked us.  Tony was born to poor parents at The Middlesex Hospital, a place I was to know well in later life.  Tony’s early years were very hard until he was evacuated to Swyre during the Second World War where life here was a revelation and he flourished.  He was later to return to Swyre, a place which was always special to him for the rest of his life.  Tony had, had hard start in life with many ups and downs until he met and married Pam.  Not everything was rosy, but they had many good, fun years together.

Pam & Tony moved to Chideock in 2002. It was sometime after this that we met up at Chideock village hall at one of the many lunches or such like. We got talking like old men do, he happened to mention the Bristol Unicorn’s a youth marching band, my mistake was to reply “Oh! I know of them. My son was in a marching band which competed against them and won on one occasion.”  Then the conversation started when, where and how?  It transpired that we both attended many band competitions during in the 1980’s, either supporting each other’s band or me in an official capacity policing the event. Feelings could run high with up to a thousand young and high spirted band’s people with their supporters.  Pam was always at the competitions with her majorettes giving support and encouragement to the Band.  While in Bristol Tony set-up A One Hundred Club and raised many thousands of pounds for the Bristol Unicorn Band.

It is Tony that we have to thank, for setting up the Chideock One Hundred Club in 2012 which is still running today, and the funds raised support local projects.

Tony like to write; he wrote and published the story of his life, but dear to his heart was writing poetry. I am sure many of us have a book of his poems on a shelf somewhere and the recent one he wrote for the Chideock WI’s 100th anniversary has gone Dorset-wide, if not further.

In May 2010 Tony started his campaign to try and make safety changes to the A35 after many promises by local councillors and our then MP.  The campaign was halted in August of that year and as we all well know the only thing that has changed on the A35 since then is the increase in the volume of traffic, but it is surprising how many people visiting still ask if this is the village where a man brought traffic to a halt for miles!

Both Pam & Tony were very active in Chideock. Pam was an active member of the Theatre Club, served on the Village Hall Committee, assisted with the fortnightly Bingo and was on the WI Committee, as well as a reliable pair of hands as a member of the Friends of St Giles Church, willing to help wherever she could. Tony was a willing door keeper at Village Hall or the Friends of St Giles events and running raffles. If ever there was an opportunity to raise money for a good cause Tony would be there to put his shoulder to the wheel. Both Pam and Tony were great supporters of the Chideock Society and regular church goers; wherever Pam was, Tony would not be far behind supporting and vice versa. It was a sad night in early 2020 when I drove Pam and Tony to the Hospice in Dorchester where Pam sadly lost her fight with cancer. Tony was not in good health himself but after this the light went out of Tony’s life. May they both rest in peace.

 

Diane & Richard.

 

On behalf of the Family.

 

We would like to thank everyone for welcoming them both into the village and for all the love and support they provided to both Mum and Tony in their later years.

As we’re so far away it has been a source of comfort to know they both had such caring friends looking out for them….

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts…

Nicola, Mark and partners Mick and Donna.