WYDOT resident engineer, Dan McAfee, retiring after 36 years
October 28, 2017
WORLAND - His journey through life at the Wyoming Department of Transportation might remind some people of the unrestricted life of Forrest Gump, but for Worland Resident Engineer Dan McAfee, it has been his life's calling.
McAfee, 60, is retiring from WYDOT on Wednesday, Nov. 1.
McAfee has served in his present position since Aug. 1, 1990. His original WYDOT hire date was June 5, 1981, as an engineer in Kemmerer. McAfee then spent three years as an engineer in Laramie, before being promoted to Worland resident engineer.
"I really thought I'd stay in Worland for 5-6 years," McAfee says. "But I stayed here, for whatever reason. It's a nice, safe place to live. I have familiarity. I know every square inch of highway in this area. I know the people here. Worland is my place."
McAfee's first day at WYDOT in 1981 set the tone for his distinguished career. "I didn't have a car," he remembers. "I had a friend give me a ride to Rock Springs. He dropped me off at the Outlaw Motel. All I had was a box full of stuff. I caught a ride to see the district engineer, who loaned me a car for a couple of months and I stayed in Kemmerer's Antler Motel for a couple of months."
McAfee drove to Kemmerer on his first working day, and he missed the turnoff because the sign said, 'Pocatello (Idaho).' "I figured it out, I turned around," he remembers.
After seven years in Kemmerer, McAfee needed a change of scenery so he moved to Laramie and spent three years.
"Then it was off to Worland," McAfee says. "Worland was on my Top 5 list, which included Sheridan, Buffalo, Laramie and somewhere else."
"I've loved this work, mostly because of the people," McAfee said. "You get to be outside. The work is diverse. You get to see things built. When all goes well, it›s a great thing."
A 1975 Natrona County High School honors graduate in Casper, McAfee was a member of the Casper Troopers Drum and Bugle Corps from 1974-76. He graduated from the University of Wyoming in 1981 with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering. McAfee's hometown is Hays, Kansas.
"It took me a while to graduate from UW, because I changed my major four times," McAfee remembers.
McAfee and his wife, Dotti, have been married for 22 years. They have two daughters and a 21-year-old son, Joseph, who attends Northwest College in Powell. An older daughter died in 2007.
McAfee remembers the tough times, too, and he recalls Aug. 30, 2004, the day WYDOT project engineer John Boltz was struck by a scraper and killed on U.S. 16 when the highway was being reconstructed. Fellow WYDOT employee Mark Stiver was seriously injured in the incident.
"When tragedy strikes, you've still got good people around you," McAfee says.
Today, John Boltz's name is part of a permanent memorial in Cheyenne of workers killed on state jobs, and a family memorial marker is near the site of Boltz's death between Worland and Ten Sleep on U.S. 16.
Through the good and bad times, McAfee and his WYDOT engineering crew have continued to work on countless construction projects, and McAfee defers credit to the successes to the dozens of guys and ladies he has supervised and to the other employees of WYDOT.
"There's so many good people, whether it's in Worland, northwest Wyoming or Cheyenne," McAfee says. "Our support system at WYDOT is amazing, second to none in my opinion. If you need a geologist or materials engineer, call one. If you need a bridge engineer, call one. Everybody is available to help."
McAfee and his wife plan "to take a break in retirement."
"For the foreseeable future, we plan to stay in Worland. We like to travel, and we have plans to fix up this house. I want to work on this old place," McAfee says. "But the No. 1 thing I want to do is to make sure our son has a future, and I want to help him. That's personal, but it's important to me."
He also plans to enjoy bass fishing, golf, cooking restaurant-quality food at home, and rooting for the Wyoming Cowboys.
There will be a a retirement reception from 5-7 p.m. on Nov. 1 at American Legion Post 44, 119 S. 7th St., in Worland.