Obituary of Earl F. Kilmartin, Jr.

Earl "Jack" F. Kilmartin Jr., 69, of Fultonville, NY passed away at home with his loving family by his side on December 22, 2021, after a long illness. Born November 21, 1952 in Amsterdam, NY - he was the son of the late Earl  F. and Helene (Eschler) Kilmartin Sr. Earl attended the Fonda Fultonville Schools.

Earl was employed by the Karg Brothers Tannery in Johnstown for 22 years. He then went on to work for the Village of Fultonville DPW for 25 years, where he retired in 2017. After only a year into retirement, Earl went to work part time for Skiffs Dairy delivering milk until his stroke in August 2019. Earl was always keeping busy with some type of side job. He was the groundskeeper for the Auriesville Cemetery for over 30 years. He spent over 10 years tending to his good friends' horses. Regardless of the location or type of job he was doing he always served with his hard work, kindness and knowledge.

If you were lucky to know Earl, you would know that the list of things he enjoyed were endless. Some of the things he truly enjoyed were riding his Harley Davidson with Arthur and Paul. Earl was an avid hunter, he rarely talked about the "one that got away" because that was rare - they didn't get away. Earl took multiple trips to Canada hunting Black Bear or Boar with Bob, Nick and Wayne. Earl would hunt "down south - Cherry Valley" with all of his close buddies (Skip, Bob, Steve, Matt, Nick, Sonny, George, Joe, Hank and anyone else that showed up for the hunt). Earl would also hunt locally - scout them out and dinner was on the table! Earl also enjoyed freshwater fishing with his boat as well as deep sea fishing with the Yankee Fleet! He often went to Gloucster, Mass with friends to catch cod or haddock. Earl enjoyed gardening as well - his flowers were always beautiful and full, and his garden had the best tomatoes and cucumbers you could find. You could always find a good poker game on a Friday or Saturday night. Earl loved spending time with his family - this was what he enjoyed most. He would be happy with the house full of grandkids playing outside or something as simple as just watching Little House on the Prairie. The "senior bus" would leave every saturday morning on a new adventure with his brother Eddie and sister in law Kathy to get out of the house (especially since his stroke) - he loved going out to dinner, going to garage sales and just sightseeing, they were even caught in Woodstock.

Earl was an officer with the Aetna Engine Co/Fultonville Fire Department for 24 years, proudly spending 10 of those years as Chief. In 2003, he was awarded the Montgomery County Firefighter of the Year Award.

After a union of 47 years & the beautiful life that was created - he leaves behind his loving wife, Linda (Snell) Kilmartin. He leaves behind 3 children: Kristi Kilmartin of Fonda, NY, Jennifer (Jeremy) VanValkenburgh of Palatine Bridge, NY and James Kilmartin of Caroga Lake, NY. Three grandsons: Nicholas Shepard of Fonda, NY, Logan and Luke VanValkenburgh of Palatine Bridge, NY. One granddaughter Tara Kilmartin of Caroga Lake, NY.

Earl also leaves behind his brothers Edward (Kathy) Kilmartin of Gloversville, NY, Donald (Joy) Kilmartin of Tribes Hill, Lloyd (Sondra) Kilmartin, Arthur Kilmartin of Fultonville, NY. One sister Sandi McCaslin of Tribes Hill, NY. Several nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.

Earl will be sadly missed by many family and friends.

The family would like to give a special thank you to Ellis Hospital, Sunnyview Rehab, Dr Michael Hardies and Deputy Parisi of the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office.

A Service of Remembrance will take place on Wednesday, December 29, 2021 at 3p.m. at the Jackson & Betz Funeral Home, 15 Main Street, Fultonville, NY with the Rev. Dr. R.W. Williams presiding.  Calling hours will be held prior to the service beginning at 12p.m. at the funeral home.  All are invited to attend a masks are required. Burial will take place at a later date in the Maple Avenue Cemetery, Fultonville.  Please visit the online memorial at www.brbsfuneral.com