Vernon Dale Welch was born July 4, 1942, in La Crosse, Wisconsin, to John and Verna (Mulder) Welch. He went to meet his Lord and Savior on Sept. 23, 2023, while in Minneapolis Minnesota.
Vern moved to Lincoln with his family in 1952. He graduated from Lincoln High in 1960. He then immediately enlisted in the U.S. Army, where he served the United States for three years, one year of which was spent in Korea. After his service, Vern returned making Lincoln his home.
On Feb. 25, 1965, he was united in marriage to Linda Criswell. They were married for 58 years. In 1980, Vernon, Linda, and their family moved to Beaver Crossing. Vern was a hard worker, who spent the majority of his career as a truck driver for Sunrise Express, and even had his own trucking company for several years called “Tranquil Valley Trucking.” In 2008, he retired and joined his wife, Linda, in Washington State. While there, he came out of retirement to drive for Pierce County Transit. In 2011, they moved back to their home in Beaver Crossing, where he returned to work for Sunrise Express until his true retirement in 2019.
Vern, first and foremost, loved the Lord. He gave his heart to God at a Billy Graham Crusade in 1964. For several years Vernon was a member of the Gideons, and was an adult Sunday School teacher at Milford Assembly of God. He also went on mission trips to both Mexico, and Mardi Gras, and for many years, enjoyed teaching at a jail ministry every Sunday night.
Vern had an insatiable thirst for knowledge. In his younger years, Vern loved motorcycles, even traveling to Sturgis and Talladega. Vernon was a beloved father not only to his own four children, but he and his wife Linda opened their home to more than 36 foster children. Vern had an uplifting spirit and a never-ending sense of humor. He loved to make people laugh.
Vernon was preceded in death by his mother and father; brothers, Larry and Fred; sisters, Bonnie and Olvetta; and niece, Carolyn Maxwell.
He is survived by his wife, Linda; sons, Richard (Deb) Welch of Lincoln, Jay (Andrea) Welch of Ord, and Doug (Denise) Welch of Beaver Crossing; daughter, Jennifer (Alex) Lopez of Bellevue, Washington; foster son, Jesse Miller of Lincoln; brother, John (Marie) Welch of Cortland; brother-in-law, Bob Parks of Fairfax Station, Virginia; sister-in-law, Deb Welch of Lincoln; grandchildren, Eric, Heather, Lindsay, Clayton, Emily, Ben, Preston, Dylan, Tyler, Daniel, Dillon, Thomas, and Drey.
Visitation will be Wednesday, Sept. 27, from 3 – 7 p.m. at Zabka-Perdue Funeral Home in Seward, with family receiving friends from 5 – 7 p.m. The funeral service will be Thursday, Sept. 28, at 1:30 p.m. at Great Plains Community Church in Goehner with interment at the Beaver Crossing Cemetery. Arrangements by Zabka-Perdue Funeral Home.
