John Fulghum

John Hunter Fulghum, 43, was born in Concord, NC on March 7, 1978 to Dr. Robert Eugene and Mrs. Leona Garth Fulghum. On Wednesday, December 8, 2021, John died peacefully at his home, joining the Church Triumphant in the life beyond this life.

John was always larger than life and that legacy lives on. He loved people, spending hours swapping tales, cheating at Spades, and leading sing-a-longs with family and friends. John participated in every sport possible at the Boys & Girls Club and served with their Keystone Club. In high school, he was voted Most Athletic of the Concord Spider Class of 1996 and successfully competed in state championships in swimming and pole vaulting. But he is most remembered for his skill and heart on the football field, where he thrilled as a Concord Spiders wide receiver and was named a Sundrop Player of the Week. He coached his dad to provide weekly post-game fuel from McDonald’s, where he downed many strawberry milkshakes.

John was tough, funny, boisterous, and always up for a party or a bit of mischief. But John also had a private, gentle, and sensitive side, never missing out on a family snuggle and always checking in with his siblings. He proved both brave and cautious, loyally leading an adventurous gaggle of North Union kids. John was a lifeguard at Beverly Hills Pool and later managed the Piedmont Primary Academy’s pool, teaching preschool swim lessons and qualifying lifeguards. He never missed a chance to hit the greens for a round of golf with his dad and brother at Maggie Valley. He adored church potlucks, plowing through the dessert bar.

He loved animals, nursing stray dogs and spending many summer days cross-country jumping on horseback with friends at Zemosa Acres. With skill and rhythm, John invented his own shag dance move, “the burnout,” competing at the annual Society of Stranders. Music was John’s most enduring passion and a source of lifelong solace for him. After introductory lessons in piano and guitar, combined with a bit of family coaching, a few chord books, and much practice, John became quite gifted on both instruments. With his brother Shawn, they would often play duets to serenade the family while cooking dinner or driving on car trips. John coaxed his mom to teach him to play a family favorite, Moonlight Sonata, on his grandmother’s piano before dinner each night, learning it section by section in two weeks, simply by studying hands and playing it back by ear. While majoring in Finance at ECU and making the Dean’s List, John channeled his great musical gifts into a budding musical career, with his band opening for major acts.

In 1997, John suffered a severe traumatic brain injury in a tragic car accident, that left him as a non-communicable, spastic quadriplegic who never lost the ability to laugh at the absurd. Over the last 24 years, the family was blessed to share many laughs with John and to celebrate many more holidays and family milestones with him at home, where his parents and caregivers dutifully provided loving support each day. In what was surely one of his best days, a few years ago, many recall the entire city cheering John on as his best friends and family pushed him through the Santa Scramble 5k, donning #11 Fulghum Spider shirts. His loyal friends even recently gathered in his yard to celebrate a 25th high school reunion during the Christmas parade.

The family is grateful for all the extra time we had with John and rejoice that he has finally been released to rest eternally in the presence of God, surrounded by the cloud of witnesses of family that have gone before, especially: his grandparents Major & Mrs. J. Hunter Garth and Mr. & Mrs. B. E. Fulghum; his Aunt Ms. Anita Fulghum Knapp; and his brother Mr. Robert Shawn Fulghum. John is survived by: his parents; his big sister Mrs. Heather Timbs Fulghum & her wife Mrs. Deborah Harris; his little sister Rev. Margaret Fulghum Davis & her husband Prof. R. Benjamin Davis; his niece Miss Reven Harris Fulghum; his nephew Master Robert “Robby” Hale Davis; his nephew due this Spring; his Aunts & Uncles Mr. Gene Fulghum, Mr. Jim Garth, Ms. Margaret Johnson, Mrs. Angie Chiquette and their families; and his many faithful and supportive friends, caregivers, neighbors, and church members, who are all as family.

John’s remains will be privately laid to rest alongside his brother in Memorial Gardens. A masked public memorial service will be officiated by the Rev. Ellen Crawford True on Monday, December 13th at 2:00 pm, at First Presbyterian Church, 70 Union Street North in Concord, NC. The family will receive friends immediately following the service in the church’s Davis Hall.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a memorial gift to First Presbyterian Church of Concord, PO Box 789, Concord, NC 28026, or the Brain Injury Association of America, 3733 National Dr., Ste 115, Raleigh, NC 27612 or the Boys & Girls Club of Concord, 247 Spring St. NW, Concord, NC 28025