Earle Welch III

1935 - 2022

Earle S. (Tony) Welch III, 87, passed away peacefully on July 8, 2022, after a protracted battle with dementia. His wife and two of his children were by his side.

Tony was born June 20, 1935, in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, to Beatrice (Johannes) Welch and Earle Samuel (Sam) Welch II and was the oldest of four children.

Tony was, by all accounts, a true 'rascal.' A consummate prankster, 'tormentor of siblings', thorn in the side of the Catholic nuns at school and periodic guest of the local police department, but the apple of his parents' eyes. He was also an expert fisherman and hunter, activities he loved participating in with his father Sam and brother Tim. Tony spent many summers at Tainter Lake with his beloved Auntie Lee and Uncle Rip; many years later he was able to bring his family to that same lake for a reunion with his entire family.

After graduating from high school in Eau Claire, Tony attended the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire and then joined the Navy, where he served as a Petty Officer 2 journalist during the Korean War. It was during a shore leave in 1957 in New Orleans that he met his future wife Ann Dorothy Bonnabel, over a shared love of Dixie Land Jazz. They were married in New Orleans, Louisiana on February 13, 1958.

Shortly thereafter, with their first daughter Karen in tow, they relocated to Queens, Jamaica, New York, where Tony worked in corporate advertising and public relations. Another daughter (Connie) and a son (Earle S. IV) later, they departed for Syracuse, New York where Tony continued his journalism career and Ann worked as an OB nurse. Their fourth child Jennifer was born and the family eventually left for North Carolina and ultimately ended up in Portland, Oregon in 1980, where Tony left the corporate world and started his own business, C & T Sales, which he established in 1985. He ran the business with their daughter Connie and sold it in 1998 and retired.

Tony was a freelance magazine writer for 45 years, focusing in his latter years on seeking out and interviewing World War II veterans in the Portland suburb area; as a veteran, he felt it was important to tell their stories. He was a member of the Outdoor Writers League of America and the Portland Traditional Jazz Society. Tony made a deep impact on the many people who passed his way, most of whom he was blessed to call his friends for a lifetime. He never met a stranger.

Tony was preceded in death by his parents Bea and Sam. He is survived by his wife of 63 years, Ann B. Welch, daughters Karen Carlin (Ron) and Connie Thomasian (Craig) of The Dalles, Oregon; his son Earle S. Welch IV (Kerry) of Damascus, Oregon; and his daughter Jennifer Caldwell (Loyd) of Gresham, Oregon; sister Vicki Armstrong (Jim) Vancouver, Washington; Martha White (Perry) North Falmouth, Massachusetts and brother Tim Welch (Leezer) Woodland, Washington, as well as his grandchildren Elise, Ashley, Will, Lindsay, McKenzie, Andrew, Jodi, Piper and Mick, and great-grandchildren Liam, Wyatt, Harper, Gavin and Hunter, and many cherished nieces and nephews.

Tony's was a life well-lived.

Tony will be laid to rest in the Welch family plot in Forest Hill Cemetery, Eau Claire, Wisconsin. A private family memorial will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the Alzheimer's Association.