May 28, 2018
Brother Leo Fulkco, a member of the western Canadian Franciscan Friars, passed away suddenly the evening of May 28, while visiting his family home and in the presence of his brothers and sisters at Nakusp, BC.
Brother Leo left us just short of celebrating his 53rd year as a Franciscan friar. He began his religious life in Cochrane, AB, and served in several places - San Miguel, CA; Lumsden, SK, and Edmonton, AB. His years of service were a blessing for us.
He was our dear brother, but also the friar who saw that our homes were warm, comfortable, and in good repair; he cared for our vehicles, removed snow, cut grass, pruned trees, and was attentive to details that most of us never noticed. Brother Leo had many interests for which he became renowned.
In the 1970s, he won the BC Provincial Championship in archery by splitting an opponent's arrow; in the '80s, he took up bee-keeping and, being one of the first to winter bees in Saskatchewan, was asked by the University to share this knowledge with others in the College of Agriculture; he was also an enthusiastic amateur photographer whose pictures won gold, silver and bronze medals in local competitions. He remained an active sportsman: he loved fishing and skiing and, long before he joined the Franciscans, he helped to establish the ski hill in Nakusp.
He is dearly missed by his Franciscan brothers, his many nieces and nephews and his surviving siblings: Tom Fulkco (Myrna) of Revelstoke; Frank Fulkco (Patricia Graham) of Kelowna and Mexico; Pearl Ryan of Nakusp; Mildred Bertuzzi (Bob Montgomery) of Goleta, CA; Wallace Fulkco (Mary) of New Denver; Sr. Hope Fulkco, SA, of Greymoor Garrison, NY; Carol Ryan (Ted) of Nelson; and Gerald Fulkco (Sherrie) of Arrow Park.
A mass of the Resurrection will be celebrated in Our Lady of Lourdes Parish Church, in Nakusp, BC on Tuesday, June 5 at 10:30 a.m.
There will be a memorial mass at the Franciscan Friary chapel, 8106 Jasper Avenue, Edmonton, AB, on Wednesday June 13 at 11:00 a.m. Inurnment will take place on Thursday August 23 at 11:00 a.m., at Mount St. Francis Retreat Centre, Cochrane, AB.