Welch remembers Champion town history with music

Jon Welch grew up in Champion and has spent his entire life as a resident there.
Chase County residents may also know him as a local mail carrier who delivered mail for 36 years before retiring the end of April this year.
But what some may not know is he has always enjoyed writing and singing songs while accompanying himself on guitar.
“I’m not a professional at all. I just enjoy doing it,” Welch said.
One of the songs he wrote is a historical account of his hometown of Champion while growing up.
It’s called “Champion Revisited.”
“I often think about my childhood growing up in Champion and all the people in my life,” he said.
“I didn’t want to forget the memories, so I wrote a song that would be a ‘record’ of those memories,” Welch added.
Welch’s song about Champion reveals a much different view of life and the people who lived there from years ago.
(Those lyrics are included with this story.)
More songs to finish
Welch has written other nostalgic songs. One of those was a tall-tale about his grandmother’s gooseberry pies, he said.
Not all his songs are historical in nature, he said. He has other types of songs as well.
He has written a number of songs that have been in different stages of completion—some are finished and some are waiting to be finished.
“Songs would come into my head while I was driving my mail route. I thought it would eventually give me something to do when I retired,” said Welch.
Welch hasn’t performed his music in front of people on any regular basis, he said.
“I just play for myself or for friends mostly. The second time I actually performed in front of a group was at the Chase County Museum on July 4,” Welch said.
“I think the old-timers really enjoyed hearing the Champion song.”
He hopes to now finish some of the songs that he started previously, he added.