Dale Flander was drafted into the Army in 1968. Unlike most of the draftees of the time, Flander didn’t end up in Vietnam. Instead, he spent nearly all two years of his enlistment in Alaska. Being an outdoorsman, the assignment was right up his alley.

After basic training in Fort Bliss, Texas, Flander was sent directly to Fort Greely, Alaska, at the end of the ALCAN Highway, 150 miles from Fairbanks. There he joined the motor pool, driving a truck for the Northern Warfare Training Center Mess Hall.

“Whenever they needed me, that’s were I went,” Flander said. His jobs were varied. For instance, he often took deceased military personnel to the morgue in Fairbanks.