Hey Gunther!: Why Are You Here?

By Walt Fluegel

Three months after he was born in Germany, Walter Gunther's father died thus making his mother a single parent during the Great Depression in 1928. She was "encouraged" to immigrate with Walter to America to live with her sisters family. However, that led to placing Walter in the Wartburg orphanage in Mount Vernon, New York until he was 14 years old. For most of that time mother and son lived separate lives except on visiting Sunday and special rare times. In those years Nazi Germany was rising to power which influenced their lives before and during the WW2. Less than ten years after being molded in the orphanage, Walt decided to go to the University of Alaska. The reader may now wonder about "Hey Gunther! Why are you here?" at that one particular time. The different "here" at different short times in the Territory of Alaska tells us that Gunther had quite a few life experiences, challenges, and adventures as he was maturing into a young man in that far off place.What did he do in high school that made it possible for him to pay his way to Alaska when few other students ever went to college in the late 40's? Once in the Territory he needed college money to continue so campus jobs and summer employment were necessary. "Here" jobs gave Walt more insights into real life with its few adherents to civil restrictions. The Yukon River freighter job was the start in some of life lessons off campus. McKinley Hotel, and the ALCAN highway jobs followed. The Territory of Alaska was growing at that time after WW2 ended so various short term summer construction jobs were good college money sources too. But why go to college? What was college life like in the Territory? These are simple questions to ask but Walt had to answer these himself. He observed and he adapted. He loved learning and also wanted to know about himself and the society around him. He also had to know more about his origins and his mothers life so he could understand his own life better. After his mother joined him in Alaska and he built a house for her they began to know more of each other. However, while pursuing a higher degree in Fargo, North Dakota Walt met Maxine.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1517177723
• ISBN13: 9781517177720
• Release Date: December 2015
• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Length: 290 Pages
• Weight: 1.11 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.0" x 0.7" x 6.0"