Patrick Fulton was browsing a used book sale at a local library with his friends in college when he came across “Baby-Sitters Little Sisters #7: Karen’s Birthday” by Ann M. Martin.
“I had to gather my friends around and say, ‘Hey guys, look at this!’,” Fulton said. “I flipped to the dedication page.”
Inside, it read: “This book is for the Fultons—Pam and Jim, Andrew and Patrick.”
“That was fun to show them,” Fulton said. “This book was dedicated to me back in the late ‘80s.”
Martin gifted the book to Fulton and his twin brother Andrew on their birthday. Decades later, on the 40th birthday of the first “Baby-Sitters Club” book, “Kristy’s Great Idea”, Fulton shared fond memories of Martin with CT Public. He honored the beloved author of the popular “Baby-Sitters Club” book series that launched in August 1986.
Finding Connecticut ties in Stoneybrook
Set in the fictional suburban town of Stoneybrook, Connecticut, the “Baby-Sitters Club” series spans over 250 books that have sold over 200 million copies worldwide. Prior to that, Martin taught fourth and fifth grade at a private elementary school in Darien.
Jean Hilton founded Plumfield Day School in the 1930s in the Noroton part of town. Fulton went to school there in the early 90s. He called it a “magical place.”
“The principal's office was actually Ms. Hilton's home,” Fulton said. “She'd have her two little dogs there, and she'd pull an ice cream sandwich out of her freezer for you, and it was just a very wholesome experience.”
Both Fulton’s grandmother and mother were teachers at Plumfield, he said. His mother was teaching second grade when Martin came along in 1977. Fulton said they became friends during Martin’s one year teaching there.
“Ann would write things in her free time, and say, ‘Hey, there's something I'd like to bounce off of you,’” Fulton said about what Martin would tell his mother. “‘Is this something that I could read to your class and maybe get some reactions on?’”
Having been a student there, Fulton said he sees the spirit of Plumfield School in “The Baby-Sitters Club” books.
“You do find those little Easter eggs and those little tidbits where the girls are talking about school [or] they're coming from class,” Fulton said. “That has a very sort of Plumfield quality to it.”
You can even find the Darien influence in the “Baby-Sitter’s Club” hometown’s name, he said.
“There is actually, in Darien, Stony Brook Park,” Fulton said. “I believe that park is where Ann got the inspiration for the name of Stoneybrook, Connecticut.”
Though Martin’s chapter at Plumfield was short, Fulton said her books captured the hearts of Plumfield students for years.
“Certainly all of the girls in my class were absolutely obsessed with the books,” Fulton said. “They all wanted to get into babysitting and they all wanted to start clubs.”
Little did they know, Fulton had his own special collection at home.
‘My Auntie Ann’
Martin became a close friend to Fulton and his family, so much so that he said his parents asked her to be his twin brother’s godmother.
“Ann is blessed to be godmother to many children, but as I understand it, my brother Andrew was the very first,’ Fulton said, “and that was before her career, even as a writer, started.”
When Martin’s career as an author did take off, Fulton said she never forgot about them.
“Every time that Ann would write a book, she would inscribe a copy for us, and mail it to us,” Fulton said. “Over time, on a shelf, we had the entire series laid out, each one inscribed with well wishes from Ann.”
Fulton said it was a point of pride for him as a kid when his friends would visit and ask about the books.
“We get those from my Auntie Ann,” Fulton said to them. “She writes them.”
His family also visited Martin in her New York apartment. Fulton said she welcomed them with honey, toast, and tea.
”She had her books here, her notes there, [and] pens and pencils laid out, ready for when inspiration struck,” Fulton said. “Her cats were a part of the space too. I'm sure she had to dodge them, walking on her work.”
The Fultons still exchange letters and gifts with Martin to this day. Fulton has even asked her for writing advice because he writes for pleasure. One year, he said she gifted him a block of writing prompts to help spark creativity.
“She deserves all of the success that she has,” Fulton said, “because she's just a great lady and a really warm person and a really dedicated and talented writer.”
Reconnecting online and on the page
Fulton called it a ‘sad moment’ when Plumfield School closed down in 1996.
“It was sad for all of us that had been part of the school community and loved the school,” Fulton said.
Fulton said many Plumfield teachers continued to teach at the new school that was built there, Pear Tree Point School. That school closed in 2018, and the property was eventually split into
four house lots.
Students and teachers kept in touch as best they could after the community was further dispersed, Fulton said, but he wanted to help.
“I started a Plumfield School Facebook group,” Fulton said. “We've had a lot of people join from all different eras of Plumfield.”
The group has over 100 members. People have shared photos and stories, Fulton said, including his third grade teacher who he had lost touch with until she joined the group.
“I've gotten this insight into seeing a Plumfield that I never knew as Plumfield in its early days,” Fulton said.
This close-knit community, even after the school’s closure, mirrors the long-lasting fanbase of the “Baby-Sitters Club”, even after 40 years. That kind of love can be found in Martin’s writing, Fulton said.
“People talk about writing being so lonely. I really don't think it is for her,” Fulton said. “I think she connects with people through her writing. Ann doesn't write for her. She writes for everyone.”
Follow the latest season of Generation: Baby Sitters Club. A podcast about the media we love and how it shapes us. Coming September 29th.
