HUBERT COULTER

FORT MEADE - Charles Hubert Coulter, 91, passed away Thursday, January 18, 2024 in Lakeland, FL.  Hubert was born in the rural country side of Fort Meade, FL on February 15, 1932 to Wiley Joe Coulter, Sr.  and Dlanie Cowart. He spent his childhood helping his mother on the family farm and with his father laying out and building many Fort Meade homes; Country Club Estates is one neighborhood you might know.  He graduated from Fort Meade High School in 1950 where he lettered in Football, Baseball, and Track & Field. He was drafted in 1951 and honorably served with the 10 th Special Forces at Flint Kaeserne in Bad Tolz, Germany. Ironically after 2 years in Germany with no injuries, he arrives back in Florida and is run over by a drunk driver. Not one to let a broken leg deter him, he then attended the University of Florida. Always seeking an active adventure, he decided to spend a summer break by fighting fires on the Alaska tundra. He then wintered in Mexico and returned to Alaska for 32 months joining a survey crew for the DEW (Distance Early Warning) Line on the Arctic Circle Coast.

        He met Jane Beach in Fairbanks, Alaska. They returned to Fort Meade where they raised their children; Vida, Keely, and David. Hubert, always an advocate for the greater good of Fort Meade, served on the City Commission, 1980-1986 and served as Mayor in 1982. He didn’t hesitate to get his tool box out when it came to a building project either. He spent many weekends and after work hours building his own home, friend’s homes, and helping to build the visitor bleachers at the football stadium. He worked hard to support his family by learning all aspects of the phosphate industry. After 30+ years he retired from Mosiac. Never one to stay idle nor stray far from construction and phosphate, he spentanother 13 years working with Semco Construction.

       Anyone who knows Hubert, knew he had a special place in his heart for the outdoors and cookout get-togethers. He loved people and would start up a conversation with anyone. If he wasn’t listening to your story he was telling you a story about one of his adventures. He will be remembered as a fun-loving friend, companion, and father.

       Hubert is preceded in death by his mother, Dlanie Barber; father, Joe Coulter; brothers, Joe Jr, Jack, Jimmy, Donald, Robert, and Calvin; sisters, Francis and Patricia. He is survived by his son, David of Fort Meade; daughters, Keely of Bartow, FL and Vida of Livingston, MT; sister Valeria Murry of El Dorado, CA; Martha Lyle of Winter Haven, FL and Sandra Boatwright of Yuma, AZ; sister-in-law, Arlene Coulter of Fort Meade and Wilma Coulter of Bartow.

      Visitation will be held from 1:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m., Friday, January 26, 2024 at Hancock Funeral Home, 945 E. Broadway, Fort Meade, FL.  Funeral services will follow at 3:00 p.m. from the graveside in Evergreen Cemetery, Fort Meade, FL.  At the conclusion of services, a Celebration of Life will be held at 4:00 p.m. at Jerry Hayne's Barn on Mt. Pisgah Rd., Fort Meade.  

      “Life should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well-preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside in a cloud of smoke, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming "Wow! What a Ride!”

    ― Hunter S. Thompson, The Proud Highway: Saga of a Desperate Southern Gentleman, 1955-1967