The Robert F. Welty, MD and Elizabeth Main Welty, MD Professorship in Surgery

This Professorship was established in 2022, when the value of the endowment of the Eldridge L. Eliason Professor of Surgery had increased sufficiently to support a second professorship. Both professorships were created through the extraordinary generosity of Drs. Elizabeth and Robert Welty.

The Weltys met at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in 1946 and married in 1948. Dr. Elizabeth “Lib” Welty (1915-2016) had grown up in Swarthmore, PA and graduated from Mount Holyoke College in 1937. She received her medical degree from Cornell University Medical College in 1941. She became an internist and Fellow of the American College of Physicians.

Dr. Robert Welty (1914-1989) graduated from the Perelman School of Medicine in 1939. Dr. Eldridge L. Eliason was his mentor during his surgical residency at HUP. In 1949, the Weltys returned to Robert’s hometown of Spokane, WA. There, they established practices along with Robert’s father, Dr. Emil Welty, who was a general practitioner.

The Weltys were known for their support of numerous academic, arts, and civic-minded organizations and programs. Whitman College and the Spokane Symphony were two favorite causes. Elizabeth generously endowed the Eliason Professorship upon Robert’s death, rather than making it a gift of her own estate as originally planned.

Current Chairholder

The Robert F. Welty, MD and Elizabeth Main Welty, MD Professorship in Surgery is currently open.