Robert Ellis Welch

Colonel Robert Ellis Welch, United States Air Force (Retired), of 1358 Stone Post Road, James Island, died at his home with his family around him on Saturday, January 17, 2015. He was a veteran of 32 years active military service, and then the Manager of the James Island Public Service District from August 1976 to June 1990. Colonel Welch's funeral service will be held on Wednesday, January 21, 2015 at Saint James Church, 1872 Camp Road, James Island at 1:00 p.m. Burial will be in the churchyard. His family will receive friends Tuesday evening from 5:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. at J. Henry Stuhr Inc., Downtown Chapel, 232 Calhoun Street.

Colonel Welch was born in Charleston on February 28, 1925, the third son of Thomas Cooper Welch and Cecilia Royall Welch and the brother of baby Cecilia Royall Welch, Thomas Cooper Welch, Jr., and Croskey Royall Welch. He was named after his father's dear friend, Robert Ellis. As a boy, he enjoyed ice cream cones with his dad, sitting on the porch swing with his mom, and swimming and boating with his brothers and friends. As a teenager, he sailed the Cygnet for the James Island Yacht Club. He attended James Island Elementary School and graduated from Charleston High School and the University of Nebraska at Omaha. He held graduate degrees from Southern Illinois University and Central Michigan University.

In the Air Force, he advanced through the ranks from Private to Colonel. He received a direct commission as Lieutenant while serving as a Master Sergeant during the Korean War. Among other awards, he held the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, World War II Victory Medal, Vietnam Service Medal, and the Republic of Vietnam Commendation Medal. When he retired from the Air Force in 1975, he was Director of Supply and Services, Military Airlift Command, Scott Air Force Base, Illinois. He had also served for over 23 years in the Strategic Air Command. While in military service, he served in Morocco, England, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Aleutian Islands, Vietnam, and 14 stateside bases.

In 1976 Colonel Welch was selected as Manager of the James Island Public Service District, and he served until his retirement in 1990. The District's Administration Building bears his name. He was also elected to the first Town Council for the Town of James Island and served from April 1993 until 1995.

Colonel Welch was a member of Harborview Presbyterian Church, the Huguenot Society of South Carolina, Charleston High School Alumni Association, the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, Disabled American Veterans, and the National Order of Trench Rats. He was a founding member of the American Air Museum in Britain and a Charter Member of the National World War II Memorial Society. Colonel Welch served as Adjutant of Roderick G. Patterson Chapter 77 of the Disabled American Veterans and as Red Eye Gnawer of Dugout 603 of the National Order of Trench Rats.

He was devoted to his wife, Daisy Bell Welch; his daughter, Harriott Holmes (Ciss) Welch of Marietta, Georgia; two sons, Robert Ellis (Rod) Welch, Jr. of James Island and John Jerdone Welch of Encinitas, California; his daughter-in-law Anne Welch, son-in-law Geoff Miller, and sister-in-law Jean Welch; five granddaughters: Wendy, Julia, Robin, and Jenny Welch and Georgette Miller; three grandsons: John and Samuel Welch and Robert (Roddie) Hughes; six great-grandchildren: Emma, Cameron, Cecilia, Dakota, Ruby, and Henry; two stepdaughters, Patricia Weaver and Karen Bennett, and their husbands Doug and Rep; and four step grandchildren, Lauren and Kyle Weaver and Jordan and Kendall Bennett. He is survived by two former wives, Harriott Jerdone Welch and Dorothy Ellen Ariail.

Throughout his life, Colonel Welch valued working hard and serving his country and community. He cared deeply about James Island, its natural beauty, and its residents. He was a loving husband, father, grandfather, and great grandfather, who sang us his childhood songs, told us wonderful stories, and shared his sense of humor and charm with everyone he met. His favorite greeting was Top of the morning! We will all miss him dearly.