Fred Martin Welker

Fred Martin Welker passed away of complications from kidney disease on Wednesday morning, December 5, 2018, one week after celebrating his 77th birthday. He was with family at his home in Denver, Colorado.

He was born in Deadwood, South Dakota on November 29, 1941 and spent his first 18 years in the Black Hills of South Dakota with his mother, father and four siblings. In 1960 he joined the U.S. Air Force and was stationed at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona where he met Charlotte Filer Peters; they were married in 1962 and had two daughters. He was an analytical thinker and took computer classes when they were first introduced. It suited him and he became a systems analyst for First National Bank in Tempe, Arizona.

Then, in 1979, they moved to Colorado when Fred took a job with Western Bancorp before a long career with Coors Brewing Company in Golden, Colorado in computer programming. Fred and Linda Dobson met in 1980 and they lived in the Washington Park area for thirty-eight years. He retired from Coors in 2005, then they traveled and spent summers enjoying time at the beloved Welker Cabin in Spearfish Canyon, South Dakota.

He was a craftsman and avid outdoorsman. Tirelessly, he created things, restored things and fixed things in his workshop - tinkering with several projects simultaneously. He was passionate about the outdoors - he hiked, rode his bike, canoed and fished. OH did he love to fish!

Fred is survived by his wife of 35 years, Linda Welker of Denver, Colorado; Five children: Dawn Dobson (Denver), Lisa Welker McIntyre (Denver), Shauna Welker Hill (Arvada, Colo.), Glenn Dobson (Colorado Springs, Colo.) and Dean Dobson (Houston, Tex.); Five grand-children: Jordan Hill (Parker, Colo.), Jacob Greenwood (Denver), Marissa Dobson Collins (Colorado Springs, Colo.), Jessa Greenwood (Swinden, England, UK), Dean Dobson Jr. and Marley Dobson (Houston, Tex.); Three great-grandchildren: EJ Collins, Kaiden Collins and Josie Hill. Three siblings: Pat Welker Wohlford (Bettendorf, Iowa), Corrine Welker Bridgeforth (Glorieta, NM) and Carl Welker (Englewood, Colo.) and his dog, Bronk. He was preceded in death by his father and mother, Nelson and Bernice Welker and his sister Gail Welker Gisselberg.

Fred Welker’s Memorial Service

There will be a brief service followed by a buffet lunch in the atrium to celebrate Fred’s life.

Date: Sunday, December 16, 2018

Time: 11:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Location: Brookdale Parkplace: in the Garden Atrium

111 Emerson Street, Denver, CO 80218

Donations

In lieu of flowers, donations are being accepted in his name for the Spearfish Canyon Foundation. Its mission is to preserve Spearfish Canyon as a lasting legacy by promoting natural and cultural history, appreciation of the environment, responsible public access, and funding to enhance the infrastructure and ecology.

The Spearfish Canyon Foundation, Inc. is a not-for-profit, 501(c)3, South Dakota Corporation. The Internal Revenue Service has ruled the Foundation to be a public charity, 509(a)1. Its federal identification number is 46-0411808.