CLEVELAND – Jay Richard Welch, 57, of Cleveland, died Friday, Jan. 12, 2007, at Iredell Memorial Hospital in Statesville.

Born June 16, 1949, in East Liverpool, Ohio, Mr. Welch was a son of Phyllis Mosser Sopko of Oakdale, Pa., and the late Rev. Richard Welch. A 1967 graduate of East Liverpool High School, he was a veteran of the U.S. Army, serving as a sergeant during the Vietnam War with the Army’s Military Police and Special Forces.

A telecommunicator with the N.C. Highway Patrol’s Troop E, Mr. Welch was a member of Cleveland First Baptist Church.

In addition to his mother, surviving are his wife, Brenda Turpin Welch, whom he married July 3, 1977; sons Jason Welch and fiancee Alison of Salisbury and Sean Welch of Cleveland; stepson Russell McDaniel and wife Melissa of Cleveland; stepmother Norma Welch of East Liverpool; nieces and nephews; sister Janet Welch Dennis and husband Earl of East Liverpool; half sister Andrea Sopko Ros and husband Emil of Moon Township, Pa.; grandchildren Keith McDaniel, Grace Howell of Salisbury, Dylan McDaniel of Woodleaf and Phillip McDaniel of Cleveland; and special pet “Spunky.”

Service: 3 p.m. Monday at Cleveland First Baptist Church with the Rev. Joe Robbins, pastor, and the Rev. Bobby Seagroves officiating. Members of the N.C. Highway Patrol Troop E will be seated as a group. The body will be placed in the church at 2 p.m. Burial will be at the church cemetery.

Visitation: 7-8:30 tonight at Lyerly Funeral Home in Salisbury.

Memorials: In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Charles B. Wang International Children’s Building, 699 Prince St., Alexandria, VA 22314-3175.