Lewis Harvey Fuller

Lewis was born in Dekalb County, AL to Imogene Posey Fuller & Hoyt N. Fuller, and moved to Chattanooga, TN as a child. He served honorably in the United States Air Force as a medical corpsman, which inspired him to enroll in & graduate from the Baroness Erlanger Respiratory Therapy Program in Chattanooga and to his first career as a Respiratory Therapist. In 1965, Lewis moved to Gadsden to establish the Respiratory Therapy Department at Baptist Memorial Hospital. He received his B.S. degree from Jacksonville State University in Business Administration and founded Fuller Medical Company in 1974 in his garage, opened up his first store front on Broad Street in Gadsden in 1981, and remained the president until selling in 2014. As president of Fuller Medical International, he conducted business with the government of Kuwait following the Persian Gulf War.

Politics and community service were very important to Lewis. He was elected to Gadsden’s first City Council, representing District 7, in 1986; and was appointed to represent District 2 of the Etowah County Commission by then Governor Robert Bentley in 2015. Lewis was also proud to serve as the vice-chair of the Etowah County Republican Executive Committee and as a member of the Alabama State Republican Executive Committee, as well as an elected delegate to both the 1996 & 2000 Republican National Conventions.

He was appointed by Congressman Tom Bevill to serve as a delegate to President Bill Clinton’s White House Conference on Small Business in 1995. Lewis served as the Board Chairman of Alabama Voters Against Lawsuit Abuse, on the Executive Committee of the Gadsden/Etowah Chamber of Commerce, as the President of the Board of the Alabama Durable Medical Equipment Association and the Chairman of the Alabama Home Medical Equipment Licensure Board.

His civic service also included serving on the boards of numerous organizations such as Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Northeast Alabama and as the President of: Gadsden Lions Club, Etowah Chapter of American Red Cross,

Gadsden Civic Theatre/Theatre of Gadsden and Downtown Action Council. On two occasions, he participated in Lions’ (Club) Vision trips to Mexico.

Lewis was a member of the Episcopal Church of the Holy Comforter for more than 50 years. He served as a Lay Reader and several terms on the Vestry, but probably enjoyed being a choir member the most. Parish trips to Camp McDowell were another favorite activity.

He enjoyed hunting with his youngest son Andrew and his uncle Ted Posey, and fishing with his eldest son David. Lewis cherished the memories of his worldwide travels, especially with his daughter Elizabeth and his wife Belinda. These last couple of years he became Poppy, and got to read stories with his grandson Cypress. He very much relished spending time with is Theatre of Gadsden friends, starring in numerous productions at the Ritz Theatre. Lewis was also known by many for his exploits driving race cars, which he capped off by racing in the 24 Hours of Daytona in 1985.

Lewis had many adventures and met many interesting people, some of whom were known to many and some of whom were known to but a few. He could go anywhere in the world and run into someone he knew. He loved meeting people and learning something about them, and he rarely parted from such meetings a stranger. He collected stories & jokes, and showed them freely with all, but it was the people themselves he enjoyed most of all, especially his family.

He is survived by Belinda Terrell Fuller, his wife of 45 years; his children David Nathaniel Fuller, Elizabeth Leona Fuller & Andrew Hoyt Fuller, and his grandchild Cypress Nathaniel Fuller; and his sisters Peggy Fuller Paul, Betty Fuller Niswonger and Christine Gass Fuller.

A memorial Eucharist will be held at the Episcopal Church of the Holy Comforter, located at 156 South 9th Street in downtown Gadsden on Saturday October 26th at 2pm with a reception to follow in the Great Hall.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the church, The Joel W. Helms Eye Clinic, the Theatre of Gadsden or any favorite charity of your choosing.

The family would like to thank all of the caregivers at Riverview Regional Medical Center – 4th Tower, Gadsden Rehabilitation – 700 Hall and Gentiva Hospice.