Col. Edwin W. Welch USMC (Ret.

Col. Edwin W. Welch, 82, died peacefully on Feb. 20th in Norfolk, VA, with Nancy, his loving wife of 52 years, at his side.

"Eddie," as he was known, was born in Beaver, PA, April 5, 1943, and grew up in Orlando, FL. From an early age, Eddie demonstrated leadership, keen wit and intelligence, athletic abilities, and artistic talents. He loved cartooning and used that skill entertaining others throughout his life. Baseball was his boyhood sport and in addition to team play, he was Spring Training batboy for major league teams (1953-1957), wearing Washington Senators uniform #97 and taking road trips with the team and manager, Bucky Harris. In high school (Boone High Class of 1961) and college (Lynchburg College Class of 1965), he served as student government president, played baseball and ran cross-country, won title of Jitterbug Champion of Orlando, was voted Homecoming King in college, and maintained Dean's List averages, while working his way through college.

Ed was chosen for the Marine Corps Platoon Leaders Program his freshman year of college with the intention of being a career Marine Corps lawyer. He received his law degree from Wake Forest University in 1968 and served as an active-duty Marine from 1968-1996. He earned his Master of Laws Degree with Highest Honors from George Washington University in 1979.

Ed's duty stations included Vietnam, Italy, North Carolina, California, Japan, Hawaii, and Washington, D.C. His final posting was as Chief Judge of the Navy-Marine Corps Court of Military Appeals, making him the most senior judge in the Marine Corps. He was the first Marine selected to serve in that position in the court's 44-year history.

Ed's second career (1996-2011) was as special deputy attorney general in the Criminal Division of the Office of the Attorney General of North Carolina, largely responsible for representing the State in death penalty litigation.

Throughout his lengthy career as a Marine Judge Advocate and beyond, Col. Welch upheld the highest standards of the Marine Corps and the legal profession. He will be missed by all who knew him.

Upon retiring full time, Ed enjoyed tennis, long-distance running, downhill skiing, volunteer work at the N.C. Museum of Art, attending Chicago Cubs games with friends, and traveling.

Ed is survived by his wife, Nancy Griffin Welch, and his younger siblings: Dr. Nancy M. Welch of Chesapeake, VA; Robbie Ford (Jim) of Orlando, FL; and, Ben Welch (Deanne) of Port St. Joe, FL. He was predeceased by his parents, Lester W. Welch and Eleanor Heidiger Welch, and youngest sister Ruth Ann Trimble.

Interment will be at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date. The family suggests in lieu of flowers, memorial donations be made to the Semper Fi & America's Fund (thefund.org), the Marine Corps Scholarship Foundation, Inc. (www.mcsf.org), or a charity of your choice.