Rest in Peace, Brother Al Welch

ALFRED LEE WELCH left his earthly existence in the arms of his sweetheart on December 19, 2023, in St. George, UT. He was born – the youngest of two sons - on Easter Sunday 1938 in Caldwell, ID, to James Afton and Tersa Lemmon Welch.

Alfred attended 1st and 2nd grade in Parma, ID, but in 1946, the family moved to Homedale, ID, where he continued his education, graduating from Homedale High School in 1956.

In the fall of 1957, Al married Marcella (Marcie) Clark also of Caldwell. From their marriage came four much-loved children, Janie Lee, Tonja Sue, Ronald Mark, and Danny Allen. Al and Marcie subsequently divorced. Al later married Maloah (“Mo”) Lee Glover, to whom he was sealed in the Idaho Falls Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1979. Mo brought 3 children to the marriage: Trenton David, Trevor David, and Selinda Marie Mullins Chesak Ellis who passed away in November of 1996 in a hunting accident. Following Mo’s death of heart failure in 2004, Al married her widowed sister Bonita (“Bonnie”) Glover Pendleton who subsequently passed away from cancer in 2013. Al later married Julia Gardner Welch with whom he lived until the time of his passing.

From the time he was young, his father owned several service stations in addition to a car dealership. Al’s first car was a Subaru Golden Hawk which he loved.

Al had a fascinating work life. As a youth, besides working for his father, he began working for a grocery store, and in the summer of 1955, he joined the Idaho National Guard. Following high school graduation, he continued in the Air National Guard full-time in Nevada and Idaho for nearly 12 years. He attained the rank of E6 Tech Sargent as a Personnel Specialist in the 124th Fighter Squadron (“First Class or Not at All.”) After his employment in the Air National Guard, he worked mostly in sales and management positions Associated Food Stores as a sundry salesman covering Southern Idaho.

He also graduated from Boise State University, majoring in computer science. He was early in the IT game and never really used his college education although he wrote a program for parts inventorying which he sold.

Among various other employments, he designed and developed a business in parts catalogs for large and small entities, became a pharmacy technician, built feed managers, owned his own small trucking company, managed a boat marina, managed a mobile home park, worked for the BLM securing water outposts. He also worked for Kenworth. He was never one to sit still, often working more than one job at a time. He was a problem solver, and his motto was to “look outside the box.” He also loved telling stories and had a great sense of humor.

In 1978 Al became a faithful member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and served in numerous callings/positions throughout his life and held a deep and abiding testimony of Jesus Christ. He truly loved the Lord and was so grateful for his blessings.
Al loved his country. He was a consummate gentleman and was loved by so many in both his business and his personal life.

 

He is survived by his sweetheart, Julie Gardner Welch, his brother Ronald (Red) Afton and Judy Welch, and children Janie Lee Wildon, Tonja Sue Graham, Ronald Mark Little, Danny Allen Little, Trenton David, Trevor David, grandchildren Tyson and Mallory Wilden, Patsy and Scott Fowler, and bonus step-children Derren and Rebecca Klein and Dwain and Alicia Klein, as well as many wonderful grand and great-grandchildren. He loved them all unfailingly.

A celebration of Al’s life will be planned in the spring of 2024 to be held in Idaho where many of his relatives reside.