FORT MCCOY — The Wisconsin Military Academy will be inducting its 2024 class into its Hall of Fame this month, and the class has one inductee, West Bend West High School graduate, retired Col. Dan Sailer.
"It’s quite an honor for me. I put over 20 years in that school house, whether I was assigned there quite often or I was in line units still supporting the academy on additional weekends and annual trainings, and stuff like that," said Sailer, who now resides in Lake Tomahawk. "So, I put a lot of time in there."
Sailer retired in 2016, after 39 years of service with the Wisconsin Army National Guard (WIARNG)/U.S. Army, and over 20 years as a full-time federal technician. According to the WIARNG, his last assignment was as the Deputy United States Property & Fiscal Officer at Camp Williams/Volk Field.
According to WIARNG, Sailer enlisted in July, 1977, shortly after his high school graduation, with Company A, 2-128th Infantry, WIARNG, in Hartford, and after completing basic and advanced training he served as a straight leg infantryman until 1980, when he was transitioned to a Tow-Light-Anti-Tank missile unit.
"I was a graduate of the officer school in 1983, that’s how I started (at the academy), and I came back to instruct the year after I graduated (from the academy,)" Sailer said. "They brought me back to instruct, which is what started my 20-plus years of instructing.
"It was a lot of training courses, I managed courses, I ran courses and I commanded units that are a part of the academy."
Sailer also served as the brigade executive officer, the No. 2 person from the commander, of the brigade-level organization.
"That was my last job there, so I worked my way up over 20-plus years," said Sailer.
According to Sailer, his best experience was as a regimental commander at Fort Lewis in Washington, where he ran a Regional Officer Candidate School (OCS), Phase III.
"The Officer Candidate School is three phases, and the third phase is a two-week, basically, SEAL operation," said Sailer. "So, those three years out at Fort Lewis were pretty incredible. I was a lieutenant colonel at the time working with the ROTC out there."
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"Truly for years, I would have young officers thank me for what I taught them, including Iraq and Afghanistan War veterans ... and said a lot of their success was based on the help and training I gave them when I had the ability to affect their careers. That was probably the biggest for me."
– Retired Col. Dan Sailer, Wisconsin Military Academy Hall of Fame inductee
According to Sailer he worked with over 300 officer candidates, all from west of the Mississippi River, during his time at Fort Lewis.
Sailer’s first full-time job with the WIARNG was in 1996, when he became the second facility manager/ training site manager at Fort McCoy, which he did until 1999.
Sailer added that the people he worked with made his time memorable, as well. “It’s the people, I tell ya, the people who I worked with were just incredible,” Sailer said. “Being at the academy offers you an additional aspect of being able to help other soldiers advance their careers, develop their leadership talents and watching soldiers grow and become officers and senior NCOs was, for me, the most rewarding part of it.
“To have such a great staff that I worked with for 20-plus years on top of it was why I kept going back (to the academy.)” He added what made it even sweeter was when he would see those officers again.
“Truly for years, I would have young officers thank me for what I taught them, including Iraq and Afghanistan War veterans come back and said a lot of their success was based on the help and training I gave them when I had the ability to affect their careers,” said Sailer, an Iraq War veteran, himself. “That was probably the biggest for me.”
Sailer added that while it took him away from his family, which includes his wife, Deb, and five children — and now 13 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren — his family was always very supportive of what he was doing.
According to the WIARNG, during his time, Sailer received many honors, including the Legion of Merit, Defense Meritorious Service Medal, Joint Meritorious Unit Award, Meritorious Service Medal with two oak leaf clusters, the Army Commendation Medal with six oak leaf clusters, the Army Achievement Medal with two oak leaf clusters, the National Defense Service Medal with star device, Iraq Campaign Medal with star device, Global War on Terrorism Medal, the Armed Forces Reserve Medal with gold hourglass & “M” device, the Army Reserve Component Achievement Medal with eight oak leaf clusters, the Overseas Service Ribbon, the Wisconsin Meritorious Service Medal, the Wisconsin Commendation Medal and others.
Sailer’s Wisconsin Military Academy Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be held on Oct. 19.
