More detail on this person: Dr. William Lloyd Welter Jr. died in Williamsburg on March 23, 2009.
He was born Sept. 19, 1932, in Secane, Pa., the son of the late William L. Welter Sr. and Georgia
Cull Welter. He was a loving husband, father, brother and granddad.
He attended West Point Military Academy, graduating with the Class of 1955. He was a member of the
West Point swim and water polo teams.
After graduation, he entered the Army and earned his wings in Army Aviation School in 1956. He
graduated from Virginia Tech, earning a master's in aeronautical and aerospace engineering. He later
attended Navy Test Pilot School in Patuxent River NAS, Md. He received a Ph.D. in higher education
administration from the College of William & Mary in 1975. He was the former holder of the World
Helicopter record for Time-To-Climb to 9,000 meters, set in a modified UH-1D helicopter.
His military decorations include: Distinguished Flying Cross, Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service
Medal, Air Medal with one Oak Leaf Cluster, Vietnam Service Medal with two Battle Stars, and the
Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal with 60 device.
Dr. Welter is survived by his wife of 53 years, Sherry Lee Mitchell Welter; his sister, Nancy Welter
Akin of Toms River, N.J.; his son, William L. Welter III of Tampa and Miami Beach, Fla.; daughters,
Melissa Welter Carpenter and Mary Elizabeth Welter of Richmond, Virginia Welter Gilliam of Chapel
Hill, N.C.; 8 grandchildren: Will, Sam and Grey Capenter, Rob and Lee Gilliam and Lloyd, Bo and Meg
Young; and sons-in-law, Robert Gilliam and Tim Carpenter; numerous nieces, nephews and other family
members.
A Memorial service will be held at 3 p.m. March 27 at Bruton Parish Episcopal Church, with interment
to follow in the church cemetery. The family will receive friends 6-8 p.m. Thursday at Bucktrout of
Williamsburg Funeral Home. Memorial donations to Bruton Parish.
This information was last updated 05/18/2016
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Date posted on this site: 01/11/2025
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