Edward Lyle Fuller, a retired pastor and state representative for the Wisconsin Association of Regular Baptist Churches, died June 26. He was 91.
Called by God to full-time ministry, Ed served with Youth For Christ in Erie, Pennsylvania, from 1953 to 1956, when he took a position as youth pastor at Bethel Baptist Church in Erie. While serving there he met his wife, Diane, and they married in 1959.
Shortly after they were married, Ed was asked to take the role of senior pastor at Bethel, where he led until 1970 when he accepted a call to Garfield Baptist Church in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. In 1986 the Lord called Ed and Diane to Emmanuel Baptist Church in Toledo, Ohio, where Ed pastored until 1996.
Throughout his ministry Ed served on the boards of ABWE, Grand Rapids Baptist College, and the GARBC.
Entering semiretirement in 1996, Ed served part-time at Fellowship Baptist Church in Racine, Wisconsin. He also served as the state representative for the Wisconsin Association of Regular Baptist Churches, speaking and offering support to churches around the state. Entering a second phase of semiretirement, Ed helped establish Heritage Baptist Church in Cedarburg, Wisconsin.
“I met Pastor Fuller over 50 years ago,” says Steve Schultz, state shepherd for the WARBC. “I knew him as a man of prayer, frequently asking for updates on matters over which he was praying concerning me and my church. I know he cared; he loved selflessly.”
Ed officially retired in 2020 at age 88.
He is survived by his wife, Diane; a son, Scott; three granddaughters; two grandsons; and three great-grandsons.
