NORWICH – Robert M. Fowlston, of Thompson Road, Norwich, passed away Wednesday, Sept. 22, 2010 at his home.
He was born on Aug. 28, 1927 in Greene a son of G. Leon and Ruth (Hollenbeck) Fowlston. Soon after his birth the family moved to Oxford where Bob attended Oxford Academy and Central School, graduating in 1945. On June 27, 1948 he married Mary A. Washburn, who predeceased him in 1985. He was also predeceased by his second wife, Jane E. Stott Badger.
Bob was a working man from a young age as a newspaper carrier, farmhand, lawn mower, and sawmill worker. He began a lifelong career in the drug store of L.E. Day, first as a soda jerk and clerk, then as a pharmacist after graduating from Albany College of Pharmacy in 1951. Bob and Mary owned Fowlston’s Pharmacy from 1961 to 1981, when they semi-retired and converted the building to a liquor store. He later worked at Service Pharmacy in Norwich before moving with his wife Jane to Pennsylvania for a few years.
When Bob retired from being a pharmacist, he moved to Inlet, NY, where he and Jane owned The Cinnamon Bear Bed & Breakfast for 10 years. He loved the Adirondacks and tried several jobs just for the fun of it. He was a bagger at Tim’s Groceries, a clerk at the snowmobile dealer, selling real estate and becoming “The Ice Cream Man,” ringing his bell delivering ice cream treats to various campsites around Inlet. He also enjoyed traveling throughout the United States, Canada and Ireland.
In 1996 he returned to Norwich to live and began hiking with his buddies, Bob Doyle, Rufus Perkins, and Dave Miller. Rufus and Bob talked him into unloading deliveries for the Our Daily Bread Food Closet. He also became a Hospice volunteer, continuing until this summer.
Always community minded, Bob was a lifetime member of the Oxford Fire Department and Emergency Squad. He was a committed donor to the American Red Cross, having donated over 23 gallons of blood. He was a long time member and currently an Honorary Member of the Lake Ludlow Club. He was a former member of the Oxford Development Association, Oxford Academy and Central School Board of Education, the Oxford Town Board and a former vestryman of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church.
He is survived by his children, Linda Fowlston of New Berlin, Tim and Sandy Fowlston of Oxford, and Althea Eiholzer of West Edmeston; his grand children, Neah Pepper of New Berlin, Steve and Carrie (Knight) Pepper of Cheektowaga, Clint, Jack, Kate and Meg Fowlston of Oxford, Garrett Eiholzer of Pavilion, and Jenna Eiholzer of West Edmeston; his sisters, Jeanette Bierman of Oxford, and Joan Walling and Ken Sumida of Las Vegas; his brothers, Richard and Esther Fowlston of Oxford and David and Linda Fowlston of Greene; his sister-in-law, Bridget Fowlston of Oxford. He was predeceased by his brother William Fowlston in 2009. Many nieces, nephews and cousins also survive.
Funeral services will be held on Saturday, Oct. 9 at 11 a.m. at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 32 Main St., Oxford. Burial will follow in Warn Ten Broeck Cemetery, Oxford.
Friends may call at the Behe Funeral Home, 21 Main St., Oxford, on Friday, Oct. 8, from 4 to 6 p.m.
Memorial contributions may be made to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 32 Main St., Oxford, NY or Hospice of Chenango County, 21 Hayes St., Norwich, NY or Our Daily Bread Food Closet, c/o Emmanuel Episcopal Church, Norwich, NY.