Ed Fuller has long been regarded as the heart of Local 1319. His decades of dedication to the craft, his Brothers and Sisters, and the community exemplify what it means to be a Union Carpenter.
Ed comes from a construction family. He was operating equipment by age 13, learning early from his father on a John Deere backhoe. In 1992, he officially joined the Carpenters in Roswell, New Mexico.
Following the events of September 11, 2001, he left the reserves to serve as an active-duty soldier. He spent more than eight years in the Army before receiving a medical discharge and returning to his trade. “Once I became physically able again, I rejoined the Carpenters,” he says.
Since then, he has dedicated himself to his work, and to improving his Local. “As Carpenters, we always want to make a job site better than when we got there,” he said. “We’re doing the same thing for the Local. We want to make this a better place. We want everybody to be proud.”
Many of Local 1319’s community efforts can be traced back to Fuller’s leadership and volunteerism. One well-known example is his Twinkle Light Parade train— an elaborate, handcrafted train originally built on a repurposed truck chassis. Over the years, the project grew to more than 125 feet long, becoming a fixture at the local holiday parades and a symbol of the Union’s spirit of giving back and of Ed’s generosity.
Fuller emphasizes that every member plays a role in building a stronger union: “That’s the job for every member out there: participate… be involved. It’s only as good as you make it.”