Carol (Jarvis) Welch

Carol Jarvis Welch, 87, passed away peacefully Monday, December 27, 2021 at her home at Silvercrest at College View in Lenexa, KS.

Private family services will be held and interment will take place at Highland Cemetery in Winfield, KS. Memorial contributions may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association, donations may be left in the care of the Shelley Family Funeral Home of Winfield.

Carol was born on August 12, 1934 in Winfield, KS, the oldest daughter of Martin and Lois (Koontz) Jarvis. Four years later, the family welcomed Carol's sister, Martha. Carol's childhood and teen years were full of fun, laughter, friends, family and music. She had a special place in her heart for Winfield throughout her life. When Carol's grandmother (who was widowed at a young age) re-married later in life and moved to California, Carol and Martha loved traveling (often by train) to visit her in Walnut Creek. After graduating from high school in Winfield, Carol attended Oklahoma A&M University (now Oklahoma State University). She received her teaching degree but also never missed a party. It was also while attending OSU that Carol developed her life-long love of college basketball.  Her father often traveled from Winfield to Stillwater to take Carol to games and Carol remained a loyal OSU fan. (Happily for her children, she also was an enthusiastic supporter of the Jayhawks.) After graduating from OSU, Carol taught elementary school in Topeka, where she began dating a handsome young dental student, Joe Welch, whom she had met in Stillwater. Joe and Carol were married in the summer of 1957 in Winfield and were married for 64 years.  Carol and Joe lived in Kansas City (where son John was born in 1958) while Joe attended dental school at UMKC and again when Joe completed his training in orthodontics at UMKC.  In between, they spent two years in Oxnard, California while Joe was in the Navy.  After Joe completed his orthodontic training, an opportunity arose in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, where Joe and Carol settled with son John and later welcomed daughter Sara.  Carol worked for several years as a teacher and then devoted her life to being a loving wife to Joe, a wonderful mother to John and Sara and keeping her family organized.  Carol was active for many years in Bartlesville Service League and the local alumnae chapter of Alpha Chi Omega. She enjoyed playing piano and listening to classical music, and was an early and frequent volunteer of the OK Mozart Festival.  Most of all, Carol loved to laugh and loved spending time with her family.

Carol is survived by her husband Joe Frank Welch of Lenexa, KS, daughter Sara Welch of Fairway, KS, son John Welch (Margaret Lynn) of Phoenix, AZ, grandchildren Andrew (Tucson, AZ) and Cate (Charlottesville, VA) Welch, and sister Martha Jarvis of Prairie Village, KS. She is preceded in death by her parents.

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