Alfred Lee Welch

ALFRED LEE WELCH left his earthly existence in the arms of his sweetheart on December 19th, 2023, in St George Utah. He was born on April 17, 1938 (Easter Sunday) in Caldwell, Canyon County, Idaho, USA, to Tersa Lemmon Welch (mother) and James Afton Welch (father, who always went by Afton), and has one brother, Ronald Afton Welch, born in 1935. Alfred started formal schooling in 1944 in Parma, Idaho, attending 1st and 2nd grades. In 1946, the family moved to Homedale, Idaho, where Al continued his education, graduating from Homedale High School in 1956. In the fall of 1957, Al married Marcella (Marcie) Clark of Caldwell, Idaho. From that 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 October 1979. Mo brought 3 children to the marriage: Trenton David, Trevor David, and Selinda Marie Mullins Chesak Ellis; Selinda 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 was later married to Julia Gardner Welch until the time of his passing. From the time he was young, Al loved all things mobile; 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 one year before graduating high school. Following 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; he worked for 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, Al also: 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. The family expresses gratitude for the many doctors and clinicians who have treated Al in St. George, including the IHC Hospital, Dr. Ben Carter, Dr. Empey and his clinic, Dr. West, Dr. Willis, Dr. Orme, Dr. Overall, Dr. Wu, Dr. Te, Dr. Cope, Dr. Prince, Dr. Codiga, Dr. Robison, and any others they may have missed. The medical care in St. George far exceeded expectations and was very much appreciated. A celebration of Al’s life will be planned for the spring of 2024 to be held in Idaho where many of his relatives reside.

Alfred Lee Welch

April 17, 1938 - December 19, 2023