Ralph McAllister was born an only child to a Colfax couple in 1921. His father, who was a mail carrier, transferred to the Juliaetta Post Office in 1922. Ralph lived in Juliaetta with his parents until he graduated from high school in 1938.

He spent his first summer away from home in 1937 working for the U.S. Forest Service in Elk River.  Over the next few years, Ralph worked in the area for the railroad, Potlatch Forest and the Forest Service.  In February 1944, Ralph moved to San Francisco, where he served in the U.S. Navy as an engine mechanic rebuilding motors for trucks and busses. While living in San Francisco, a young woman by the name of Elna caught his eye.  The same day he left the Navy, Ralph married Elna.

Ralph and Elna moved to Moscow, where they raised two daughters, Nancy and Ginny.  Ralph and Elna later divorced.  His daughters still live in Moscow.

In 1950, Ralph was hired as the head mechanic at the University of Idaho.  Ralph also became a volunteer firefighter with the Moscow Fire Department in 1955.  He served as a fireman, captain and assistant chief.  In 1967, the fire department’s fire chief retired, and the position was offered to Ralph.  While he loved being a mechanic at the university, he decided to accept the fire department’s job offer.  In his 20 years of serving as the Moscow Fire Chief, Ralph worked with many university students. The Moscow Fire Department provides housing to 20 students in exchange for the students serving as volunteer firefighters for the station. Many of the students who lived at the fire station have gone on to pursue professions in the firefighting and medical fields.

In the late 1970s, a student named Alan Walker moved into the fire station’s college living accommodations. Ralph saw potential in the young man, and he became Alan’s personal mentor. Alan completed his fire service training and went on to become the Idaho state fire service trainer.  He also worked for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and other organizations in firefighting-related positions. He is now president of Upper Iowa University in Fayette, Iowa.  Ralph recently traveled to Iowa to attend Alan’s induction into the university.

Ralph retired from the fire department in 1987. He spent the next 11 years living in Coeur d’Alene with his wife, Joanne, whom he married in 1970. They lived by a lake, where he loved to hunt and fish.

When I asked him about the biggest trout he ever caught, Ralph stretched out his arms as far as he could reach. “Oh, it was about 22 to 24 inches, I imagine,” he said.  “And there was a blueback about 21, 22 inches.”

Joanne passed away in 1997, and Ralph moved to Robinson Park in Moscow.  He joined the Good Samaritan Society – Fairview Village Estates community in the fall of 2006.

I once asked him about his most rewarding experience in life so far. A large smile came over his face and he said, “Well, I would have to say working with the students. The University of Idaho students.” He said it made him feel good when he thought about the many students he had worked with over the years. The many lives he has helped change, and save, each had a special place in Ralph’s heart.