Ira David Welch was born in Memphis, Tennessee on December 8, 1940. He is now 83 years old. He graduated from Messick High School in 1958, worked for a while and enlisted in the United States Army and was discharged as a Sergeant three years later. He received his BA and MA degrees from the then Colorado State College where after he received his doctorate degree from the University of Florida he returned to join the faculty at the now University of Northern Colorado where he retired, for the first time, as a Professor Emeritus. He says of himself, “It has been a long and fruitful life. The truth of the matter is that I have lived longer and accomplished more than could have been expected. I come from an alcoholic family. My father and my brother were both alcoholics and is often the case in an alcoholic family one sibling is an alcoholic and the other an overachiever. Such was the case in our family.” Dr. Welch was a licensed psychologist and was recognized a Diplomate by the American Board of Professional Psychology. He ultimately retired as the Dean of the Graduate School of Professional Psychology at the University of Northern Colorado. Now 16 years after his retirement, he and his wife, Marie of 59 years, live near their children and grandchildren in Denver, Colorado.