Boy I went way back in my archives for this photo. It’s my army buddy Alroy Strand from Minnesota and myself after a day of hunting around Fort Hood Texas. That’s my trusty “53″ Pontiac that would get us to whatever destination we wanted.
I lost contact with Alroy after the Alaskan earthquake of the early 70’s. He moved there after he got out of the service, and we used to write one another every now and then. After the quake my letters kept coming back marked “no such address,” so I assumed Alroy and his family were victims of the quake.
Well I’ve been thinking about him lately, and went to Anywho.com and searched for an Alroy Strand in Alaska. I didn’t come up with anything, but there was a Mike Strand in Anchorage with his wife and three kids. It said he was 35 years old, so I knew this could be Al’s son. I phoned the number it gave, and Jeri Ann answered the phone. She said Alroy was her father-in-law, and we had a nice chat getting to know a little about one another. I was glad to find out Al was alive and kicking. Seems he’s been working the Alaska oil fields for quite some time, but also was spending time in his home town of Baudette Minnesota. Jeri Ann gave me Al’s mothers phone number, and I was able to leave a message on his phone, after getting some information from her. She’s 86 years old, and seemed like a real sweetheart.
After almost 40 years of not speaking to one another I got a long anticipated phone call from my army pal this evening. It was so good to hear his voice, and find out about “the man” Alroy Strand. No matter how grown up we thought we were at 19-20 years old, the world and life had a lot to teach us yet. We were kids back then, and now were grandpa’s, and on the downward slid of life. Alroy has lived in Alaska for over 40 years, and has been on many hunting and fishing adventures. He owns a cabin on the lake up there, and has a couple places in Minnesota. He’s not far from the Lake of the Woods, and still hunts and fishes since he retired this year. The last 18 years he worked at Prudhoe Bay running heavy equipment and supervising about 18 men.
I mentioned that my dream was always to do a grizzly hunt in Alaska, and Al said he wished he would have known, cause he could of set one up for us. Boy I missed that by a few years didn’t I? Well we promised to stay in touch, and try to see one another before either of us kicks the bucket! It was sure good hearing from my old friend, and Lord willing we will meet once again.
Mike
That’s great Mike. I have to give you credit, because I’m the type of person that I probably wouldn’t have tried to contact him after such a long time, but you did, and you reap the rewards.
Great story.
It was nice to chat with you and to find out that you were able to contact him. Best Wishes…Jeri Ann Strand