CHISHOLM — The remains of a Minnesota native and World War II veteran have been laid to rest in Washington state 65 years after his death.

U.S. Air Force Capt. John Ponikvar of Chisholm died in a plane crash 1952, KARE-TV reported. Ponikvar’s plane veered off course and crashed into Mt. Gannett in Alaska. Weather delayed rescue efforts and the men on the aircraft where entombed under ice and snow.

“Sixty-five years, that’s a lifetime for a lot of people,” said Janie Fowler, Ponikvar’s daughter. “I’m just lucky I lived long enough for it to happen.”

Fowler was 7 years old when her father died.

“We were coming home from church and we heard it on the radio,” Fowler said. “I can just remember sitting in the car and my mom crying.”

Fowler and her mother left the air base in Alaska and moved to Seattle to be with family. Ponikvar’s family arranged for a stone to be placed at Chisholm’s Calvary Cemetery.

A National Guard crew discovered parts of the plane in 2012 and reignited the search for the remains. Searchers have uncovered 37 of 52 servicemen. Ponikvar’s remains were found in 2016.