Dr. James Todd Welborn, 92, of Weaver Drive, died Saturday, July 9, 2016, at Hinkle Hospice House after declining health.
A funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Thursday at First Presbyterian Church by the Rev. Dr. Lee Zehmer. Burial will follow at Forest Hill Memorial Park. The family will receive friends from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. Thursday prior to the service in the church fellowship hall.
Dr. Welborn was born Oct. 7, 1923, in Davidson County to William Fowle Welborn and Bessie Lee Todd Welborn. He was a graduate of Davidson College, the University of North Carolina Medical School and the University of Maryland Medical School, completing his residency at Charlotte Memorial Hospital.
As a physician, he served his community for 53 years, first opening his private practice in Lexington in 1949. He was called to military service in 1956 serving as an Army captain medical officer in Japan, post Korean War and returned to Lexington to reopen his practice in 1958.
He is a former chief of staff of Lexington Memorial Hospital, former chairman of the board of trustees of Lexington Memorial Hospital and member of the Davidson County Medical Society.
He was the staff physician for the Department of Corrections, Davidson County Facility for 40 years and served as medical director of Buena Vista Nursing Facility. Dr. Welborn was also past president of the Lexington Rotary Club and a lifelong member of First Presbyterian Church, where he served as a deacon and elder.
His favorite pastimes were playing golf and tennis and traveling after retirement. He was a charter member of Sapona Country Club and traveled extensively in the U.S. and abroad with his brothers and friends.
His most memorable travel was playing golf at the old course at St. Andrews Golf Links in Scotland. His brothers, William Fowle Welborn Jr. and wife Geraldine Hobbs Welborn and Samuel Gould Welborn and wife Marion Guerriero Welborn, and sister-in-law Janice McNeill Welborn preceded him in death.
He is survived by his wife of 66 years, Lillian Marie Summers Welborn of the home; sons James Todd Welborn Jr. and wife Becky and David Summers Welborn and wife Ellen, all of Lexington; daughter Leigh Welborn Stephenson of Raleigh; brother John Henry Welborn of Charlotte; grandchildren Lynn Welborn Scott and husband Gabe, Kelly Marie Welborn, Davis Hauser Welborn, Myers Summers Welborn, Blair Stephenson Kuplic and Annie Hunter Stephenson; great-grandchildren Grace Elizabeth Scott, Madelynn Marie Scott and Wyatt James Scott; and numerous nieces and nephews.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to First Presbyterian Church, P.O. Box 586, Lexington, NC 27293 or Community Health and Wellness, Circle of Friends Fund, c/o Lexington Medical Center Foundation, P.O. Box 1817, Lexington, NC 27293.
Davidson Funeral Home is serving the family.
Online condolences may be made at www.davidsonfuneralhome.net.
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