Wayne Westerberg is the owner of a grain elevator in Carthage, South Dakota, who employs McCandless for a period of time. Whatever job Westerberg presented him with, Alex completed without any complaints (18). Westerberg met him when Cris was hitch hiking, trying to reach Alaska. Westerberg and McCandless created a fatehr and son bond that grew as time went by. "That fall he developed a lasting bond with both the town and Wayne Westerberg" (19). The impact of his death was tragic due to their close relationship.
Jim gallien, a hunter and a woodman, meets Chris McCandless on his final trip before reaching the Alaskan wilderness. Gallien was the last person to see Mccandless alive. He drove Alex to The Stampede Trail, where he insisted he take food and boots for the journey he was about to embark on. Jim practically kept McCandless alive with the supplies he gave him, even though Chris did not want them at the time. while in his car, Jim finds a bit of information on Chris' life. It was not much because McCandless was quiet but he still managed to leave his mark in Gallien's life.
Jan Burres and her boyfriend Bob found McCandless on the side of the rode picking berries and other edible plants. Jan convinced Bob to take McCandless with them. Chris stayed with them for a week and grew fond of the couple, since they were also tramps. For two years, McCandless send them post cards of his travels and how life was treating him so far (31).
Soon enough McCandless returned to spend time with his dear friends, and replenish his minerals. Chris joined them to the slabs, a huge flee market - swap meet where he helped them sell books by organizing them and talking to people. " McCandless was especially to Burres, flirting and clowning with her at every opportunity" (45). He was loving, caring, and kind, which was why it devastated Burres and Bob when they heard about Alaska.
On his way to find the true meaning of his existence, Chris McCandless , or Alex crossed paths with multiple people he eventually held close to his heart. One of them was Ronald Franz. Franz stumbled across McCandless one day and offered him a ride to his composite, and on their way there Franz knew that McCandless was different. At first, Franz thought that maybe McCandless had steered off onto the wrong path, but quickly discovered that had nothing to do with McCandless being out in Oh-My-God-Hot Springs (60). With McCandless's old soul, Franz and him got along very well. "Franz grew increasingly fond of McCandless" (52). Alex wrote to Franz and even returned to spend some time with his beloved friend Ronald. Franz grew so fond of McCandless's company he even dared to make a request of Alex, since his own son and wife were dead there was no one to carry the name Franz and asked McCandless if he could adopted him, a question that McCandless avoided due to its uncomfortable (55).
Soon enough, McCandless once again embarked on his excursion to the Alaskan wilderness. Alex wrote to Franz, advising him to make drastic changes in his life, most of his commodities, and learned what living truly was (58). Surprisingly, Ronald did and moved in closer to Alex's old home in Oh - My - God - Hot Springs, waiting for his dear friend to return, When Franz learned about McCandless's death, this man once had a strong Christian Faith, renounced to his beliefs. Franz couldn't believe that God had allowed such a terrible thing to happen to a wonderful boy like McCandless. He no longer believed in a God but once again began believing in whiskey (60).
