William A. Welch

Cochran Funeral Home and Crematory of Blairsville announces memorial services for Mr. William A. Welch, age 78, of Ocala, Florida and Blairsville, Georgia, who passed away on Tuesday, January 16, 2018 in Blairsville.

Mr. Welch was a native of Brunswick, Georgia, and had served in the U.S. Air Force during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Mr. Welch had been a fireman with the City of Miami before retirement. Bill had a wide variety of interests and passions - many involving speed - including motorcycles, cars, boats, horses and many involving competition - including golf, skeet shooting, and foxhounds. He excelled at all of these. Bill also enjoyed flying and had a pilot's license. Bill enjoyed life and had a tremendous sense of humor, and was generous in sharing laughter with everyone he knew - never met a stranger and was a warm and caring man. Bill's greatest passion was for his family; his wife, sons and daughter; yet, he had enough love to extend out to embrace outside his immediate family and include many dear friends.

Bill leaves behind his loving family members: wife, Beverly, of Blairsville; son and daughter-in-law, Thomas Joseph and Roxanne Welch, of Blairsville; son, Joseph O'Neil and Eileen Welch, of Blairsville; and daughter and son-in-law, Melanie Lynn and Myron Ketter, of Hiawassee; brother and sister-in-law, Dr. Bobby O'Neil and Ann Welch, of Tampa, Florida; four grandchildren: Kelly Nicole Welch, Caroline Elizabeth Welch, William Mortimer Welch, and Rachel Lea Welch; great grandsons, Kyle McArtee and Caleb McArtee also survive.

Memorial services for Mr. Welch have been scheduled for Saturday, January 27, 2018, at 2:00 p.m., to be held in the Chapel of Cochran Funeral Home of Blairsville. The family will meet with friends for one hour before the services at the funeral home.

The family requests that in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions be made to either St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital; at stjude.org, or to the Shriner's Hospital, at shrinershospitalsforchildren.org/greenville/ways-to-give

Bill was a fan of Albert Einstein - "Only a life lived for others is a life worthwhile."

Arrangements have been entrusted to the care of Cochran Funeral Home and Crematory of Blairsville. Please share your condolences and sign the guest registry online at www.cochranfuneralhomes.com