It is with deep sorrow that we announce the passing of Arthur Joseph "A.J." Welch of Mount Dora, FL on October 5, 2022 at the age of 78.

A.J. was born August 17 th , 1944 in Burbank, CA. In 1967 he graduated from The University of South Carolina with a B.A. in Military History.

In 1968 he enlisted in the US Army, attending Infantry Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning, GA, where he received a Second Lieutenant commission.

Not long after, he attended the Armor Officers Course in Fort Knox, KY.

His first assignment was to the 12 th Cavalry Regiment, 3 rd Armor Division in West Germany.

In 1970 he attended Primary Aviation School for helicopter training, later transitioning to COBRA helicopters.

In 1971 he was assigned to Troop B, 1 st Squadron, 9 th Cavalry, 1 st Air Cavalry in Viet Nam.

Upon returning home in 1973, he served at Fort Bragg, NC, and later served in the National Guard and the Reserves.

In 1988 he earned his Master of Science degree in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Wisconsin.

He remained in the Army for thirty-three years, twenty-seven of those in command slots, and retired in 2001 with the rank of Colonel.

That same year he became a Military analyst in Germany for the Department of Defense, retiring and returning to the States in 2013.

A.J. issurvived by Patricia, his loving wife of 55 years, and their son Sean.

His final resting place will be Fort Jackson National Cemetery, Columbia, S.C.