Who is Elroy Berdahl? How does he help O’Brien?

O’Brien recounts that he decided to run away to Canada.He found a fishing resort called the Tip Top Lodge, and the owner, Elroy Berdahl, took him in without asking questions. Berdahl never asked O’Brien questions, he just played Scrabble with the boy, gave him odd jobs to do, and ate meals with him. But O’Brien concluded that the old man read the paper, he was “no hick;” he knew that O’Brien was contemplating dodging the draft. One day Berdahl took O’Brien out fishing one. Berdahl steered the boat all the way to the border with Canada and then waited. He even turned around, away from O’Brien, while the boy made his decision. The boy thought, Now’s my chance. He almost jumped out of the boat. He considered fleeing but changed his mind. Elroy had helped O'Brien decide in his own gentle way.