.a-I 075 Michael Fullerton Shelton native Michael George Fullerton, who participated in dangerous military missions on six continents as a member of the Navy SEALS, died Sunday, March 7, in an automo- bile accident in Charleston, , South Carolina, The 40-year- old had just re- tired from the Navy on Decem- ber 31 as a mas- ter chief petty of» ficer after a 22- year career in- cluding 20 years as a SEAL. He had lived for the last 18 years in Newport News, Virginia. . He was born June 6, 1963, in Seattle to Arline Marie (Smith) and George Edward Fullerton. He began his schooling in Shelton at Mountain View Elementary and became part of the first Naval :Ju- nior Reserve Officer Training Corps class at Shelton High School, As commander of the NJROTC unarmed drill team, he became the youngest member ever to win the Outstanding Drill Comman— der of Washington State. After graduating from SHS in 1981, he attended Millard Military Acade- my in Baudon, Oregon, before en- listing in the Navy in October 1981. He was named Outstanding Recruit of the Battalion upon graduation from boot camp, then went to hospital corpsman school. After serving as a corpsman m Michael Fullerton many places, he ended up at Bethesda Hospital in Maryland. It was then that he was accepted into the exclusive and highly se— cretive Sea Air and Land (SEAL) program and completed basic un- derwater demolition school, the training program for SEALs. There followed 20 years of train» ing because SEALs are constantly schooled in an array of disci- plines. He knew so much about medicine that he would be classi- fied as a physician’s assistant \ outside of the service. In the ’90s when President Clinton was look: ing for a combination bodyguard and someone who could render immediate medical aid in an emergency, Mr. Fullerton was one of two finalists for the job after the White House searched the military for the best candidates All SEALs have to be fluent in another language. When Mr. Ful- lerton went to military language school in Fayetteville, North Car- olina, he was determined to ace the Spanish class, and his plan was to learn it by immersion by dating his teacher. He graduated at the top of the class and later married the teacher, Marly Melen- dez, in December 1989 in Puerto Rico, where she had been born. He was the leader of SEAL Team 4 based on the East Coast when he retired. As a SEAL, he went on secret missions on every continent except Antarctica, ser- ving in mountains, deserts, jun- gles mid everything in between, and participating in both gulf wars. His parents rarely knew where he was or where he had been because of the nature of his work. He had started his own con- struction business in Virginia and If ., .i ”(of was building a hybrid Land Rover at the time of his death. His fami- ly said he was very active in ’his neighborhood and always working to bring his neighbors together. His survivors include his wife Marly Fullerton and daughter Marlita Fullerton, both of New< port News; mother Arline Fuller— ton-Rufer of Tacoma; father George Fullerton of Shelton; sister Susan Arline Fullerton, Fantozzi of Castle Rock; nephews Anthony (Tony) Michael Fanbozzi and Angelo Vincent Fantozzi of Shelton; and grandmother Daisy Neun of Port Angeles. A memorial service is sched- uled for 10 am. Monday, March 15, in Little Creek, Virginia, where the officiant will be a mem- ber of Seal Team 4. Mr. Fuller- ton’s remains will be cremated. , OCR Text: .a-I 075 Michael Fullerton Shelton native Michael George Fullerton, who participated in dangerous military missions on six continents as a member of the Navy SEALS, died Sunday, March 7, in an automo- bile accident in Charleston, , South Carolina, The 40-year- old had just re- tired from the Navy on Decem- ber 31 as a mas- ter chief petty of» ficer after a 22- year career in- cluding 20 years as a SEAL. He had lived for the last 18 years in Newport News, Virginia. . He was born June 6, 1963, in Seattle to Arline Marie (Smith) and George Edward Fullerton. He began his schooling in Shelton at Mountain View Elementary and became part of the first Naval :Ju- nior Reserve Officer Training Corps class at Shelton High School, As commander of the NJROTC unarmed drill team, he became the youngest member ever to win the Outstanding Drill Comman— der of Washington State. After graduating from SHS in 1981, he attended Millard Military Acade- my in Baudon, Oregon, before en- listing in the Navy in October 1981. He was named Outstanding Recruit of the Battalion upon graduation from boot camp, then went to hospital corpsman school. After serving as a corpsman m Michael Fullerton many places, he ended up at Bethesda Hospital in Maryland. It was then that he was accepted into the exclusive and highly se— cretive Sea Air and Land (SEAL) program and completed basic un- derwater demolition school, the training program for SEALs. There followed 20 years of train» ing because SEALs are constantly schooled in an array of disci- plines. He knew so much about medicine that he would be classi- fied as a physician’s assistant \ outside of the service. In the ’90s when President Clinton was look: ing for a combination bodyguard and someone who could render immediate medical aid in an emergency, Mr. Fullerton was one of two finalists for the job after the White House searched the military for the best candidates All SEALs have to be fluent in another language. When Mr. Ful- lerton went to military language school in Fayetteville, North Car- olina, he was determined to ace the Spanish class, and his plan was to learn it by immersion by dating his teacher. He graduated at the top of the class and later married the teacher, Marly Melen- dez, in December 1989 in Puerto Rico, where she had been born. He was the leader of SEAL Team 4 based on the East Coast when he retired. As a SEAL, he went on secret missions on every continent except Antarctica, ser- ving in mountains, deserts, jun- gles mid everything in between, and participating in both gulf wars. His parents rarely knew where he was or where he had been because of the nature of his work. He had started his own con- struction business in Virginia and If ., .i ”(of was building a hybrid Land Rover at the time of his death. His fami- ly said he was very active in ’his neighborhood and always working to bring his neighbors together. His survivors include his wife Marly Fullerton and daughter Marlita Fullerton, both of New< port News; mother Arline Fuller— ton-Rufer of Tacoma; father George Fullerton of Shelton; sister Susan Arline Fullerton, Fantozzi of Castle Rock; nephews Anthony (Tony) Michael Fanbozzi and Angelo Vincent Fantozzi of Shelton; and grandmother Daisy Neun of Port Angeles. A memorial service is sched- uled for 10 am. Monday, March 15, in Little Creek, Virginia, where the officiant will be a mem- ber of Seal Team 4. Mr. Fuller- ton’s remains will be cremated. , Mason County Genealogical Society,Obituaries,Other Obituaries,F Last Name,Fullerton, Michael George.tif,Fullerton, Michael George.tif, Fullerton, Michael George.tif