‘They took me’: JBLM soldier killed in hit-and-run was a celebrity to his family

Puneet Bsanti / The News Tribune (TNS)

When 39-year-old Lance Melder returned to Temple, Texas, his mere presence would lift his family’s spirits.

Melder was considered a celebrity at home and everyone looked up to him. From his fellow soldiers to strangers at gas stations, Melder was an instant friend, his wife, Alyssa Melder, told The News Tribune.

Melder was driving on Interstate 5 at milepost 132 north of the Tacoma Mall area on March 30 when his vehicle was struck from behind. Melder died at the scene of the accident. The driver who hit him was driving a 2000 Chevrolet Silverado and immediately abandoned the car. This individual then carjacked a white GMC Acadia and drove off.

There were no arrests, but Alyssa Melder said authorities had identified some possible suspects. The News Tribune was unable to reach the Washington State Patrol for an update on the crash.

Lance Melder was stationed as a tanker at Joint Base Lewis-McChord at the time and had been in the Army since 2006.

Alyssa Melder said the accident happened on a Saturday and she was not immediately notified. She began to worry when she hadn’t heard from her husband until Monday. She made a few calls and a police officer approached her and said he would find out where her husband was.

The officer said he would check his room and that was the last time she spoke to him. Alyssa Melder said she called the officer back and soon realized what it meant when he didn’t answer.

Alyssa Melder said the officer couldn’t speak to her until uniformed soldiers came to her home and knocked on her door to tell her her husband was dead.

“So I knew I was basically just waiting for these men when he didn’t respond,” she said. “And then they came and knocked on my door after my kids got home and told me what happened.”

Alyssa and Lance Melder met through MySpace and immediately connected, she said. At the time of her husband’s death, they had already been married for 14.5 years and had four children together.

Alyssa Melder and her children planned to move to Washington after the children finished the school year in Texas. Lance Melder had been stationed at JBLM since August 2023.

“The children aren’t doing particularly well either,” she said. “When I tell you he was a hot commodity in our house, I mean it. He was definitely a favorite. He was our celebrity.”

Alyssa Melder said her husband’s sister was the last person in her husband’s immediate family.

“Everyone is taking it really hard. As far as he is concerned, he only has one sister. Both of his parents have now passed away and it is obvious that she is unwell because she no longer has any family members,” she said.

Alyssa Melder said she spent this week in Washington packing up his belongings. JBLM has planned a unity memorial for Lance Melder on Thursday.

“I promise I’m not biased. He was an exceptional soldier, a great leader. All of his people really looked up to him. Even now, they’re like he left a legacy,” she said.

Alyssa Melder said she asked investigators questions and learned there were no cameras in the area where the hit-and-run occurred.

“The man hit my husband, stopped someone and stole another vehicle. I feel like you would have seen him if there were cameras,” she said.

Alyssa Melder said she believes there should be more cameras on I-5 so more accidents and fatalities can be captured and used as evidence to support victims.

When it comes to justice, Alyssa Melder initially said she doesn’t want to give the perpetrator a lot of energy.

“They have already taken my person, my best friend,” she said. “I believe in God and I believe this person will still live in their own hell.”

Alyssa Melder doesn’t want the person who hit her husband to be out in the world “taking someone else’s person away from him.”

“If nothing else, I might have some answers, some peace of mind, because I feel like it’s become harder for me to have more questions than answers,” she said.

Since the day they found out her husband had died, she and her family had been “floating,” Alyssa Melder said.

“He was loved not only by us, but by his boys and everyone he met,” she said. “I feel silly thinking that he was this great, great person. That was him.”

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