On December 15, 2019, our sweet sister and aunt, Judith Ann Fulks, passed away following a long illness. Judy was born in Salt Lake City to Margaret Derrick Shepherd and Augustus (Gus) Shepherd on January 31, 1940. She graduated from South High.
Judy had numerous health issues over the past several years, which made it impossible to live in her home. She was placed at Sandy Health and Rehabilitation, where she resided the past 4 years. This became her home, and she considered her caretakers as her friends. They loved her sweet disposition.
Judy was easy to love. Through life’s many difficulties, she found a way to love and adapt through change, which made it a joy to serve her. She had a deep love for animals, especially her dogs Lassie, Taffy, Annie, Heidi, and finally Bobbie who visited her every week at the care center and was fed copious amounts of treats. Her dogs became her children and brought her so much joy since early childhood. She would always say, “They love me unconditionally”.
In the summers of 1957 and 1958, she worked at the Yellowstone Hotel with her cousin Carol Ann. She made several new friends and often reflected on that special time and place.
On February 16, 1963, she married her husband Lee Fulks from Kentucky at the Skaggs Memorial Chapel in Salt Lake City. They were married 34 years until his passing in February of 1997.
She worked for Champion Construction in Midvale, Utah for 32 years. She started as a “Gal Friday” and moved to bookkeeping and accounting. She loved her career, the friends that she made, and being able to sneak her dogs under her desk so they could be with her.
Judy loved Jesus and enjoyed listening to stories in the Bible this helped bring her comfort as her body had become weak. She found peace in believing “to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord”.
Judy is survived by her brother Robert Shepherd and her sister in-laws Jean Shepherd and Janis Shepherd. She was proceeded in death by her husband Lee Fulks, mother Margaret Derrick Lester, father Gus Shepherd, and most recently her brother Richard Shepherd.
On Saturday December 21st, graveside services will be held at 1:00pm at Wasatch Lawn Mortuary, 3401 South Highland Drive. There will be a viewing from 11:45 to 12:45, a “Root Beer Float Toast” and a display of some of her favorite things. Please join us.
