Retired Maj. Gen. Alexis Lum, who fought in three wars and served as the state adjutant general from 1983 to 1991, died Sunday. He was 82.

After his retirement from the state and the Army National Guard in 1991, Lum worked as military liaison for U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye.

In a written statement, Inouye said yesterday: “;Alex Lum was a great American patriot, serving our nation in war and in peace. I was privileged to have Gen. Lum serve as my special assistant for military affairs from June 1991-December 2007.

“;He played a key role in coordinating programs and policies important to the military services in the Pacific. I owe him a lot. The people of Hawaii and our nation benefited greatly from his work.”;

A graduate of Roosevelt High School, Lum was drafted in 1945 in the last months of World War II and served as an enlisted man in the Pacific, attaining the rank of staff sergeant.

After he was discharged in 1947, he became a student at the University of Hawaii, where he earned his Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering and an ROTC commission as a second lieutenant in 1951.

After service in Korea, Lum joined the Army National Guard in 1954, and when its 29th Brigade was activated in 1968, he served in Vietnam as executive officer of the 31st Engineer Battalion.

After the Vietnam War, Lum served as commander of the Army National Guard's Headquarters Installation Command. Promoted to lieutenant colonel while on this tour, he served his last four months in Vietnam as commander of the same battalion.

Lum was appointed head of the Hawaii Army National Guard in January 1980.

In civilian life, Lum worked from 1954 to 1982 at the Naval Ammunition Depot, now the Lualualei Naval Magazine. He retired from federal civil service in 1982, when he was appointed adjutant general by Gov. George Ariyoshi and received his second star as a major general.

He was married to the former Leimomi “;Momi”; Mookini, and they have three children—Angela Thomas, Alexia Carvalho and Oliver—and four granddaughters.

Funeral services are pending.