It has been some time since I updated our NEWS section.  A lot has gone one this summer.  One important event was the election of new officers.  The results were:

Carter Osborne – President.  This is Carter’s second “administration.” He is one of the founders of the Museum and was our first President, starting in 1990.  He saw the museum through our critical first years.

Tracy Ball – VP/Secretary.  Tracy was a director and has spent many years giving his all to the Museum. He gave us our first home at Autocraft.  First in their basement and then over their huge paint shop.  Great times were had at Autocraft.

Kenneth Berry – Treasurer. Kenneth was also a director and has been an active member for a number of years.  Although he will be busy with the Museum’s finances, we also depend on Kenneth for his electrical expertise, handling heavy machinery and counsel.

Tommy Morris – Director.  Tommy is another founder and was our second president for a short period in the 1990s until work took him to Los Alamos, NM.  His is still in New Mexico, but with today’s easy communication he will be an active director.

Garrett Osborne – Director. With Tracy moving up to VP/Secretary, we needed a director to fill his unexpired term.  Garrett is a student in electrical engineering, loves trains and has a lot of good ideas.  He has already surprised us with a 3D printed proof representing our White Train power buffer car in HO-scale!

Chris Mitchell is our third director, and was not up for election. His term runs until May 2027.

The Oklahoma City Train Show is rapidly approaching.  A lot of members are planning to go.  Email us if you have any questions.  The OKCT website is: http://www.okctrainshow.com/

It seems to be by default, but we are building a collection of donated speeders (powered handcars).  Our first speeder came with the White Train donation by Pantex.  Our second acquisition was from the Keller, TX, railroad museum.  The latest is from the Colorado Model Railroad Museum (www.cmrm.org). It is a small collection right now, but we have enough to start building a "Speeder Shed" to keep them out of the elements.

Come and see the progress we've made completely redoing the garden railway. If anyone wants to help out, the crew would welcome more hands.

Last year we renovated the electrical system in the White Train guard-escort car TSSX G-34 and people touring the interior will finally get to see the car as it looked when in service. As we work toward a meaningful interpretive display of the White Train, this car will be the centerpiece. We have several grant proposals in the works for additional renovation.

We're also considering a grant proposal to fund various aspects of our library (over 1000 books).  We need more shelving and we would benefit from an intern or volunteer to help with inventory and organization.

The layout is running smoothly.  Most, if not all, spurs are now wired, so we can do a lot of switching. A few months ago, we bought an AB set of Rapido Santa Fe FTs.  They arrived this week, and are waiting to be programmed.  At first glance, they are beautiful!  I look forward to seeing them lead a reefer block around the layout.

No news to report on the Rapido Halliburton variation cars.  We could get the notice any day now.

So, that will do it for now.  Check back often to see the latest news.