Dallis A. Drake was born on September 14, 1918, in Chapman, Dickinson County, Kansas. He was the son of William D. Drake and Theresea Forster Drake. He was the husband of Laura Harrison Drake. They had a child namely Laura Deanna Drake. He was employed as a sailor before enlisting in the Army in 1938.

Dallis served in Company B, 82nd Reconnaissance Battalion, 2nd Armored Division, as a Sergeant during World War II. He saw action in North Africa and Sicily, earning a Silver Star for bravery in July 1943. After recovering from a combat-related ulcer, he joined the Normandy campaign, landing in France on July 9, 1944. Sgt Dallis was Killed in Action on July 27, 1944, in the vicinity of Quibou, France while engaging three German tanks aboard his M8 Greyhound armored car along with two comrades. He is now buried in the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial, Colleville-sur-Mer, Departement du Calvados, Basse-Normandie, France. He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart in recognition of his bravery and sacrifices.