Charles Fulton

Charles Dulane Fulton, 96, died Jan. 15, 2012, in Kalispell.

He was born on the family homestead in eastern Montana on Jan. 17, 1915, the son of Charles and Daisy Fulton.

He began teaching in 1935 and enrolled at the University of Montana the next year, where he earned his bachelor's in 1940.

He married Benita Lyon in Oakland, Calif., on Dec. 31, 1941.

Dulane served as a lieutenant in the Navy during World War II and served for nearly three years in the Pacific. After the war, he went to Missoula to finish his master's. In 1946, he moved his family to Columbia Falls, where he was first principal and later superintendent.

Dulane loved horses and rode throughout the Bob Marshall Wilderness over the next 50 years. He and a group of packers formed the Back Country Horsemen in the early 1970s. Dulane also belonged to the Columbia Falls Volunteer Fire Department and the Masonic Lodge, and he worked with the Salvation Army.

He is survived by his sister Gwen Thibodeau; children Bob, Dick, Shirley and Glen; eight grandchildren; and six great grandchildren.

A memorial service will be announced later in the spring.

Memorials may be made in Dulane's name to the Flathead Chapter of the Back Country Horsemen, 3115 Middle Road, Columbia Falls MT 59912-9282; or the First Presbyterian Church, 540 South Main, Kalispell MT 59901.