2023 Seacoast Division Spring 2023 Event
Details:2023 Seacoast Division Spring 2023 Event
Published:12 March 2023
Winter 2023 President’s Letter
Greetings Seacoast Members,
It`s hard to believe it’s already February. I hope you are all staying warm and making progress on your railroads this winter.
Annual Meeting Summary
We held our Winter 2023 Event and Annual Meeting at the Westbrook Community Center in Westbrook Maine on January 7th. During the Annual Meeting segment of the Event the 2022 Division status was presented and the three Directors were formally elected per the bylaws. Bob Kotsonis completed his term on the Board of Directors and we all thank him for his service. Jay Ehlen, Guy Mason and Tom Oxnard, MMR were elected to three year terms as Directors. Many of you already know Jay and Tom who were incumbents. Guy Mason is a new Seacoast Member as well as a new Director. Congratulations to all three and thank you for volunteering.
Here`s the 2023 Seacoast Division Leadership Team:
Financially, the Seacoast Division had a good year. The 2022 beginning balance was $5,878.83 and the ending balance was $6,529.34. The major source of income was the sale of donated items at the Silent Auction in April and at the "for sale" table in July.
The Faulter Fund made a major donation ($1,000.00) to the First Baptist Church of Shapleigh Train Club. Several teens are building a modular layout and the Seacoast Division is happy to support them. If you know any young modelers who could use some financial help, have them take a look at our website where an application form is available to down load.
2022 was not a great year for increasing the Division’s membership. Membership dropped from 174 to 157. We lost 20 members and gained only 3. If you know anyone who dropped out, please contact them and encourage them to rejoin, or at least ask the reason why they left.
The Achievement Program gave out only one AP Certificate for the year. Hopefully we`ll see an increase in 2023.
Dave Delorey continues to do a great job with our website athttps://www.seacoastnmra.org. The website has an incredible number of resource documents and clinics linked to it. Please take a look when you can.
Geoff Anthony, the Switch Tower Editor, is always in need of articles for the Switch Tower. Even a few photos of your latest project will be a welcome addition to the Switch Tower. The January 2023 edition of the Switch Tower was recently added to the website.
Four quarterly Events were held in 2022. The Winter Event was hopefully our last "Zoom only" event. The other three were live with Zoom. Jay Ehlen has stepped up to be the Activities Coordinator. Thank you Jay! We need a second Activities Coordinator to work with Jay who is knowledgeable in MS Excel and Word, Zoom, and computers in general. Please think about stepping up and taking on this role.
Eight Seacoast members attended the 2022 NER Connecticut Yankee Convention in Windsor CT. Seacoast members John McHugh and Jim Gore. MMR gave clinics at the convention.
Winter 2023 Event
Besides losing Bob Kotsonis as a Director, he also stepped down as the Audio/Video coordinator for the events which included broadcasting them on Zoom. Tage and I tried to get everything working at the event, but we were only partially successful. Our A/V skills need improving and we are looking for a member to step up and take Bob’s place as the A/V coordinator. If you have computer skills, please consider volunteering.
Dan Pugatch gave a great clinic on Modeling Brick and Concrete, and the rest of the Winter Event focused on Operations. Included were a clinic by Bruce Robinson, a hands on demonstration by Chuck Hastings and the Southern Maine Model Railroad Club, and a panel discussion/presentation on operations with panel members Matt Keiser, John Newick, Bruce Robinson and myself. Rob Selberg opened his St. James Sub (N) following the Event. I would like to thank all of those above who participated in and supported the Winter Event.
Seacoast Spring 2023 Event
The Seacoast Division Spring 2023 Event on April 15, 2023 and the location has not been finalized yet. Watch for the Event notice. Jay Ehlen is organizing the event and we are in need of clinics and presentations. Some feedback which we received at the Winter Event was for more variety in the clinics/presentations. We are planning the Spring Event with more variety in mind. Having been the Activities Coordinator for several years, I have always looked for clinics in these four general categories:
Member’s Layouts - Concept, Design, Construction, Prototype, Operations: If you have built or are building a layout, take some photos or a video and tell us about it. We’re always interested in seeing what everyone has accomplishedOne clinic in each category makes a great Event! At this time, we do not have any clinics lined up for the Spring 2023 Event. We need your help. Please consider giving a clinic at the Spring Event and subsequent Events.
Other Upcoming 2023 Shows and Events
The Maine 3Railers Model RR & Dollhouse Show is February 18, 2023 at the National Guard Armory, 179 Western Ave., Augusta ME.
NERx - The Northeastern Region (NER) will be holding another NERx event on March 20-23, 2023. NERx is an "on-line convention" held in the evenings of the above mentioned dates. Anyone can join in and watch on- line clinics, video layout tours, roundtable discussions and model showcases. Look for it on the www.nernmra.org website.
The Southern Maine Model Railroad Club is hosting its 3rd Train Show at the Westbrook Community Center, 426 Bridge St., Westbrook, Maine, on April 22, 2023. Details for the show are available athttps://southernmainemrc.wordpress.com. The Seacoast Division needs a few members to man a Membership Recruitment table at the event. Chuck Hastings is also looking for clinicians to give presentations during the show. Please contact me if you can work the table or give a clinic at the show. I hope many of you will attend the show and support the SMMRC.
The Great Falls Model RR Club show will be held at the Mt. Ararat High School, 68 Eagles Way, Topsham ME on April 29, 2023. Details for the show are available athttps://www.greatfallsmodelrrclub.org/train-shows/great-falls-spring-train-show-saturday-april-29/.
Seacoast Division 2025 NER Convention Exploratory Committee Status
The Seacoast Division 2025 NER Convention Exploratory Committee continues to investigate the possibility of the Seacoast Division hosting the 2025 NER Convention. Earlier, while waiting for another Division’s plans to firm up, we were considering either 2024 or 2025, but the Lake Shores Division has recently committed to host the convention in Rochester NY in 2024. At this time we have located one feasible venue in Concord NH and we are continuing to look at other options. Each of the four major committees (Overall Convention, Inside Activities, Outside Activities, and Publicity) will be co-chaired in order to share the workload. At this time two Seacoast members have volunteered to be a co-chairman for the Inside Activities Committee and the Publicity Committee. We are still in need of at least one volunteer for each the co-chair positions in the Overall Convention Committee and Outside Activities Committee before we can commit to hosting the 2025 NER Convention. Please think about stepping up and becoming a Committee Co-chairman.
Once again, consider volunteering. This is your organization and we need help in several areas.
Enjoy the winter and I hope to see you at the Spring Event.
Glenn Mitchell
Seacoast Division NMRA President & Director
Published:28 February 2023
2023 Seacoast Division Winter 2023 Event
Details:2023 Seacoast Division Winter 2023 Event
Published:13 February 2023
Fall President`s Message 2022
Greetings Seacoast Members,
President`s Message November 2022 Greetings Seacoast Members, It`s hard to believe it`s already late November and Thanksgiving is just two days away. I just finished raking and blowing leaves and mowing the grass for the last time. I am glad that is over. The mover has been put away and the snow blower is fueled and ready to go. Now it`s time to get down to fun things like Thanksgiving Dinner and working on the railroad.
The Seacoast Division Fall Event was a huge success. Vice President Jay Ehlen organized the event which was held at the Stratham Fire House on October 8, 2022. Thanks again to Mike Grahame for providing the venue. James Van Bokkelen, Vice President of the Seacoast Trolley Museum, gave a presentation on the relocation of a layout that was donated to the museum. But, before they could install the layout, they had to build a building to house the layout. Tom Oxnard, MMR gave an illustrative presentation of how the Achievement program works. Rich Breton gave the third presentation on general photography and adding a video camera to a locomotive or rolling stock. After the event, Dave Kotsonis and Dick Fralich opened their layouts for visitors. I would like to thank everyone involved in putting on the Fall Event. Great job!
Summer is not usually the time for train shows, however, the Concord Model Railroad Club puts on their show every year on the second Sunday of August (Aug. 14) at the Everett Arena in Concord, NH. This show is the best show in New Hampshire and the Seacoast Division will be represented. Stop by at our table and say hello. I look forward to seeing you there.
After all of you have finished your Thanksgiving festivities, you can spend the weekend visiting layouts that are part of the Tour de Chooch tour. 36 layouts in Massachusetts and New Hampshire will be open on Saturday and Sunday, November 26-27, 2022. See thewww.tourdechooch.orgwebsite for details. Several of the layouts belong to Seacoast members. The Heritage Park Railroad Museum in Union, NH will have their Boston and Maine -1909 layout, built by a group of Seacoast members, open on Sunday as part of the tour. This is a great opportunity to see a lot of outstanding model railroading.
The Seacoast Division Winter Event and Annual Meeting will be held on January 7, 2023 at the Westbrook Community Center in Westbrook, ME. Watch for event notices in your email.
The Northeastern Region (NER) will be holding another NERx event on March 20-23, 2023. NERx is an “on-line convention” held in the evenings of the previously mentioned dates. Anyone can join in and watch on-line clinics, video layout tours, roundtable discussions and model showcases. Look for it on thewww.nernmra.orgwebsite. Last March, we got to see several Seacoast members` layouts which were video-taped by Bob Kotsonis. The organizers are currently looking for clinicians and layouts to videotape for 2023. If you are interested in giving a clinic or having your layout videotaped or even just showing off your work in a short Model Showcase, contact me and I will connect you with the NERx coordinators.
The Seacoast Treasury remains stable with a balance of $6599.34. The Chip Faulter Fund has a balance of $9663.85 after making a $1000.00 donation to a church youth group that is building a modular layout in Maine. We continue to look for worthy recipients of funding from the Faulter Fund. If you know any young people that could use funding to support their model railroad activities, contact Tage Erickson or me and I will make sure that information will be sent to you.
Our 2024 NER Convention Exploratory Committee continues to look for an appropriate venue for the convention. Portsmouth and Laconia are the primary areas of interest at this time. I recently sent out a request for volunteers to help with the convention. I thank all of you that have volunteered. The email contained a “strawman” list of positions that needed filling. The convention chairmen roles are well defined in the NER Convention handbook, but the rest of positions were made up by me based on what I know and have observed at other conventions. Given that, I hope that you will not get too concerned about the specific positions listed on the chart. I am sure the specific needs might change and everything will be dependent of the final choice for a venue. At this time I ask all of you this question: “Are you willing to help with the convention?” I hope many more of you can answer YES and volunteer. We will sort out the roles and positions so that every volunteer feels comfortable with the job that they take on.
That`s all I have for now. I wish everyone a happy and safe Thanksgiving. I hope to see you at the Winter Event!
Best regards,
Glenn Mitchell, Seacoast Division NMRA President and Director
Published:11 November 2022
Published:11 November 2022
2022 Seacoast Division Fall 2022 Event Recap
Details:2022 Seacoast Division Fall 2022 Event Recap
Published:8 October 2022
Seacoast Division NMRA 2022 Fall Event
Details:Seacoast Division NMRA 2022 Fall Event
Published:11 September 2022
President`s Award
Published:06 September 2022
Summer President's Message 2022
Hello Seacoast Members.,
The summer has flown by and once again I am late getting this letter out to you. I recently thought back to last winter, when I had planned several model railroad tasks that needed to be done in the warmer weather. Most involved rolling the table saw out on the driveway and slicing up sheets of plywood or Masonite. Fortunately I bought most of my stockpile before the prices jumped due to Covid. Unfortunately, that also tells you how far behind I am with construction. Regardless, I have not had the saw out yet. Before I begin I need to create my master "cut list." Once I know what I need, I can usually roll through it – the key is to not over think it. I’m guilty of doing that a lot. So the message here regarding building your railroad is – don’t over think it – just do it!
As my layout progresses, I find that mixing up the tasks is helpful. After a lot of layout structure work, track-work, and wiring, I needed a change. Time for some scenery. I really admire the scenery created by Pelle SØeborg and Lance Mindheim. I think one of the reasons I like their styles is that they both model "modern" eras. I think most of their scenery style would fit in my 1975 era layout with the correct vintage of motive power, rolling stock, and vehicles. I chose a section of the layout to begin scenicing that is 16 ft. long and one foot in depth with a backdrop. Just a double track mainline with a slight grade going through Illinois corn fields. I started the "landscaping" with Styrofoam insulation. I purchased a Woodland Scenics hot wire foam cutter which makes shaping foam so much easier and neater that using a knife and a rasp. Just make sure you have proper ventilation. I’ll post some pictures as things progress.
Summer is not usually the time for train shows, however, the Concord Model Railroad Club puts on their show every year on the second Sunday of August (Aug. 14) at the Everett Arena in Concord, NH. This show is the best show in New Hampshire and the Seacoast Division will be represented. Stop by at our table and say hello. I look forward to seeing you there.
Eleven years ago, in 2011, I went to my first North East Region Convention – the Roger Williams Express – in Warwick Rhode Island. I was able to sign up for multiple operating sessions. Model railroad operations is one of my favorite aspects of the hobby. First, I was able to operate on a club layout (I don’t remember the name.) on the way to the convention. I got to experience the dynamics of a club layout, which has to meet the needs of the many members. The second layout I toured was Don Irace’s Providence & Worcester Railroad. Every aspect of the layout – multi-level benchwork, track, scenery, and prototype modeling- was very well executed. It was also the first layout that I have encountered to use JMRI Panelpro signaling and dispatching. Don’s layout provided a lot of inspiration for my own layout design. I was lucky enough to operate on it again at the 2017 NER convention. Unfortunately, this layout was dismantled a few years ago when Don moved. Ever since that first convention, I have been signing up for as many operation sessions as possible at successive NER conventions. Seeing how other modelers have constructed and operate their layouts always provides me with new ideas.
This year I signed up for two layout tours at the Connecticut Yankee NER Convention in Windsor, Connecticut. I expect additional operating positions to become available prior to the start of the convention. Clinics are another big part of any convention. The Connecticut Yankee has 51 clinics available from Thursday thru Saturday. There are a lot more activities than I want to mention here. More information is available at ner-conventions.org/connecticut-yankee. I encourage every Seacoast member to attend the Connecticut Yankee Convention which runs from Sept. 15 thru Sept. 18. Enrollment is open!
Lastly, the Seacoast Division Fall Event is scheduled for October 8, 2022 at the Stratham Volunteer Fire Department. I want to thank Mike Grahame for providing the venue. Vice President Jay Ehlen will be organizing and running this even. Watch for the event notice.
That’s all I have for now. Enjoy the rest of the summer and I hope to see you at the CMRRC Show or the Connecticut Yankee NER Convention.
Take care,
Glenn Mitchell, Seacoast Division NMRA President and Director
Published:02 August 2022
2022 April NMRA Event
2022 Seacoast Division NMRA Event, Saturday, April 23, 2022
Published:03 April 2022
Spring President's Message 2022
Greetings Seacoast Members,
It`s hard to believe that it`s been a month since I was elected by the Board of Directors to the office of President. It`s an honor to serve the members of the Seacoast Division. I hope I can perform up to your expectations. It`s time for me to reach out and speak to you, the Seacoast Membership. I`ll talk a little about myself and then discuss where we`re going as a division.
But first, I want to thank Tage Erickson and Mike Pedersen who have completed their 3 year terms as Directors and have chosen to step down. Tage served as a Director for 5 years and as the Seacoast President for 3½ years. Mike served 3 years as Director. We all greatly appreciate all of the good work and support to the division that Tage and Mike have given. We also know that they will both continue to support the Seacoast Division in the future. Tage has already stepped up to manage the Chip Faulter Fund. Mike has volunteered to organize and run the silent auction at the Seacoast Division Spring Event.
A Brief Introduction
While I know many of you from the Events over the past years, I also know there are many more of you that I have not met. I look forward to the opportunity to meet with all -of you in the future. I have been an NMRA member since 2008 and a Director for 5 years. I have served as Vice President and Event coordinator for 3½ years prior to becoming President.
My interest in model railroading began at an early age when my parents gave me an American Flyer S gauge trainset. Soon after that, I was at the throttle on my uncle Russ`s amazing HO layout which had hand laid track and many NMRA contest winning scratch built structures. It was my inspiration to model HO gauge.
I grew up in the small western suburb of Chicago named Berkeley. Berkeley`s northern border abutted the massive Chicago and North Western Proviso yard (the largest yard in the country until the mid-1950`s). The Chicago Great Western Railroad bisected the town. I remember counting the cars on the typical 100+ car CGW trains when I should have been paying attention in grade school. Needless to say, these two railroads would play a part of my future plans.
After college and starting a family, we moved to New Hampshire in 1981. I joined the Bedford Boomers Club in 1985 and spent many years building two modules which were part of the club show layouts for almost 30 years. Having moved several times since 1981, I never got that home layout built even though I started a couple of times.
Around 2008 after joining the NMRA, I got my first taste of serious operating and I have been hooked since. Besides operating regularly on several friends` home layouts in southern New Hampshire, I have attended several NER conventions and have always signed up for as many op sessions as I possible could.
After working for a major defense contractor for 34+ years, I retired in 2015. My fiancée and I both sold our houses and we bought one together in Concord, NH. One of the criteria was it had to have a useable basement. (I was going to say “large basement†but it will never be large enough).
The ambitious home layout that I am currently building models the C&NW in 1975. The Elgin & Joliet Eastern Railroad is modeled as well and interchanges traffic with the C&NW. The EJ&E gives me a connection to the steel mills in Gary, IN that will be modeled. The layout design is a two level around-the-room bookshelf style layout that is being designed for operations. I am designing it in XtrakCad, a free model railroad CAD tool available from JMRI.org. It will include a PanelPro computer based CTC panel, Block detection, and signals on the C&NW main line. (remember â€" I said it was AMBITIOUS!) So far, I am still working on the first phase of the layout and have a couple hundred feet of track and about 50 turn-outs installed. Stand by for updates and possibly a clinic as construction proceeds.
The Seacoast Division Going Forward
The major goal of the Seacoast Division is to serve the membership and promote the hobby. The quarterly Events have been our primary way of accomplishing this. We work to make the events educational as well as entertaining. They also provide a venue to meet and socialize with other members. We continue to look to the Seacoast membership for clinic and presentation ideas as well as for volunteers to give the clinics and presentations. We need your help. I have been the Seacoast Activities Coordinator for the past for 3½ years. I cannot continue in that position and be president. Besides, it is time for a new coordinator to bring in new ideas for the division events. One option that has been discussed is to have a member organize and run a single event. If anyone wants to give it a try, but is not sure how to do it, don`t worry, you will be supported. If you`re interested, please contact me.
An Election Update
Every year, 3 of the 9 Director positions are up for re-election. The voting is conducted prior to and the results are announced at the Annual Meeting held at the Winter Event held in January. This year we had 4 candidates for 3 Director positions. After the election was over it was discovered that one of the winners was not eligible to run for or hold the position of Director because that individual was not an active member in the NMRA. Article VI para. 1 of the Seacoast Division Bylaws states that a Director must be a member of the NMRA.
A Special BOD meeting was held via Zoom on Feb 11, 2022. The seven BOD members present unanimously certified that the remaining three eligible candidates Dave Kotsonis, Geoff Anthony, and Jim Seroskie won the three Director positions. Please join me in congratulating them.
An Election Update
I would like introduce the new Seacoast Division Leadership Team:
| Jay Ehlen | Director and Vice President | ||
| Dave Kotsonis | Director and Treasurer | ||
| Nelsen LeMay | Secretary | ||
| Geoff Anthony | Director and The Switch Tower Editor | ||
| Dave Delorey | Webmaster | ||
| Tom Oxnard, MMR | Director and NH AP Chair | ||
| Larry Cannon, MMR | ME AP Chair and ME Registered Agent | ||
| Bob Kotsonis | Director | ||
| Ralph Brown | Director | ||
| Jack Lutz | Director & Clinic Historian | ||
| Jim Seroskie | Director and NER Webmaster | ||
| Bruce Campbell | Membership Chairman | ||
| Tage Erickson | Faulter Fund Chairman | ||
| Steve Russo | The Switch Tower Assistant Editor |
As I stated earlier, the Activities Coordinator position is open. Please consider stepping up and taking on this role.
Spring Event April 23, 2022
As the number of covid cases in New Hampshire and Maine diminishes, the prospect for a live Spring 2022 Event is improving. At this time we are planning on the Spring event being live with Zoom at the Newington Old Town Hall on April 23, 2022 from 10:00 AM to 2:00 pm. We need 3 more clinics to round out the agenda. Again, I ask for your help to make the Spring Event a success. We will also be holding a silent auction as a fundraiser for the Seacoast Division. We are asking members to donate their un-needed model railroad items. Details will be announced soon. I hope to see many of you at the Spring Event in person or on Zoom.
Best regards,
Glenn Mitchell
Seacoast Division NMRA Director and President
Published:03 March 2022
Seacoast Division NMRA Zoom Event Report
Seacoast Division NMRA Zoom Event Report
Published:25 January 2022
2022 Board Of Directors Meeting 01-06
2022 Board Of Directors Meeting 01-06
Published:24 January 2022
Model Railroad Collection Saved in a BIG way!
Seashore Receives Multi-Million Dollar Donation
Published:24 January 2022
2022 January NMRA Zoom On-line Event
2022 Seacoast Division NMRA Zoom On-line Event, Saturday, January 15th 2022, 10:00am-12:00pm
Published:09 January 2022
Lucien (Lou) Champagne - RIP
Lucien (Lou) Champagne passed away recently.
Fellow Seacoast Members,
It is with great sadness that I have to report to you the passing of our Division Membership Chairman, Lucien (Lou) Champagne. I had been trying to reach Lou for the past several weeks. Today, after reaching out to Lou’s family via a letter, I was able to speak with Lou’s wife, Marilyn, who told me that Lou died on December 15, 2021.
As some of you know, Lou was afflicted with Parkinson’s disease. It seemed to come on him rapidly over the past couple of years and seriously affected his ability to communicate. He spent several periods of time in recovery from various infections over the past 2 years. He eventually succumbed to one of these infections, that his body was not strong enough to fight off.
There have been no funeral arrangements made at this time. Marilyn is still working on writing Lou’s obituary. On behalf of the Seacoast Division, I conveyed our condolences to her. For any of you that wish to contact Marilyn, I have her contact information. Please contact me and I will gladly pass that on to you. As I get more information, I will pass it on to you.
Lou was an enthusiastic model railroader. His layout was a joy to operate and I am supremely thankful that I had the opportunity to do that. He was a wonderful person that gave his time and effort to many worthy endeavors such as the Ski Patrol at Sugarloaf and the local volunteer fire department. HIs work as our Membership Chairman was excellent, and extremely vital to the functioning of our Division. He was a great friend to many of us and he will be sorely missed.
I would like to encourage any of you that knew Lou and have a story about him that you would like to share with us, to please write it up and send it to our Division Webmaster, Dave Delorey, so that it can be posted on the Division website in the Fallen Flags section. Thank you!
Regretfully,
Tage Erickson, Seacoast Division President
Published:04 January 2022
PLEASE VOTE!
Seacoast Division Members,
The voting period for this years election will end tomorrow. If you have not voted, please take the time to do so. We need your vote. This division is run by members like you. If you are voting via traditional USPS mail, then you should have already sent in your ballot. If you are voting via email, then you still have another day to get it done. The voting instructions are available by clicking on the following link:"Seacoast Division Methods of Voting".
PLEASE VOTE!
Also, the comment period for the proposed By-Laws change ends tomorrow. The change to the By-Laws was sent out to you about 6 weeks ago. You can see the proposed changes by going to the division website and clicking on the link provided on the home page. If you have any more comments, please submit them to me immediately. The Board of Directors will vote on the proposed By-Laws change at the nest BOD meeting scheduled for Thursday, January 6, 2022.
Best regards,
Tage Erickson, Seacoast Division President
Published:04 January 2022
Seacoast Division Winter 2022 Zoom Event
Seacoast Division Winter 2022 Zoom Event
Seacoast Division Winter 2022 Zoom Event Notice.pdf
Published:16 December 2021
2022 Winter Event Update
Fellow Seacoast Division Members,
2022 Winter Event Update
Given the dramatic increase in Covid19 cases throughout Maine and New Hampshire, The Board of Directors and Officers have decided that it would be in the best interest of the safety of our members, to cancel the in-person portion of the upcoming 2022 Winter Event, scheduled for Saturday, January 15, 2022. We are still planning to conduct the Winter Event via a ZOOM meeting on the same date, and at the same time, 10:00 AM. We regret having to take this action. But we felt it was necessary, given the significant increase in Covid19 cases in both States. It is serious enough, that Both State Governors have called up the National Guard to assist the already strapped medical personnel that are treating the new influx of cases at medical facilities around both States.
Glenn Mitchell will be sending out a normal Winter Event announcement message in the very near future, that will have the details of the schedule for the ZOOM meeting. We hope that all of you can be a part of the ZOOM meeting that day. This means that the Silent Auction that was scheduled to take place at the Winter Event will not happen. The Silent Auction will take place at our next scheduled in-person Event.
Please understand, that the action we took is in the interest of the safety of our members. Unfortunately, this pandemic will be with us for a while. All we can do is get the vaccinations that are recommended and wear masks when appropriate. Other than that, we have no choice but to live with this as we move into the future. Like many of you, I was looking forward to attending the Annual Springfield Train Show at the end of January. But now I will have to consider not going to this show. If the Covid19 case continue to rise as they are right now, then I will have to stay home. It just would not be worth the risk.
Voting Procedures
As a reminder, the election process has begun! This message and the Division Voting Procedures will also be listed on the Division web site,Seacoast Division Methods of Voting. We need each of you to please take the time to open the document and read it very thoroughly. There are two ways to vote, by mail and by e-mail. Please follow the instructions carefully. We would like everyone to have the opportunity to vote. This year, we are fortunate to have 4 candidates for the 3 positions on the Board of Directors. Please review the bios for the 4 candidates and vote accordingly. If there is another Division member that you would like to vote for, please enter that person’s name on your ballot. All the ballots must be in the possession of the Division Secretary by Wednesday, January 5, 2022.
This message and the Division Voting Procedures will also be listed on the Division web site, seacoastnmra.org. The election results will be announced at the Winter Event/Zoom meeting on January 15, 2022, and also published on the Division web site. Your vote is important!
Please remember to vote!
We need each and everyone of our members to vote. This is your organization! Thank you for your attention and I want to wish each of you a very Happy Holiday Season.
Best regards,
Tage Erickson, Seacoast Division President
Published:13 December 2021
SMMRC Flea Market
Thursday, December 16th, 2021, 6:00PM to 7:30PM
Spruce Room, Westbrook Community Center
426 Bridge Street, Westbrook, ME 04092
A slight departure from our usual, the Southern Maine Model Railroad Club will be hosting a 'Flea Market' type event during our regular 6pm third Thursday meeting at the Westbrook Community Center in the Spruce Room.
Published:10 December 2021
Bill Trueheart - RIP
Bill Trueheart from Bedford NH passed away recently.
Fellow Model Railroaders,
It is with deep regret and my duty to inform you that we have lost a great friend and modeler. On Friday morning, December 3, 2021, Bill Trueheart passed away. Bill was a U.S. Army veteran who served for 23 years with duty in Korea and also in Vietnam, retiring in 1980 at the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Bill owned his own hobby shop for a while and was one of the founding members of the Bedford Boomers model railroad club. Over the past 40 years, he was a great friend to many of the model railroaders in the Southern New Hampshire area. Bill was also an active Seacoast Division member for over 30 years. His presence will be sorely missed.
Funeral arrangements and Bill`s obituary can be found on the following website, https://obits.phaneuf.net/william-trueheart-1. While I didn`t know Bill very well, I do know that many of our long time members did know him very well. It would be wonderful if some of you that knew Bill, would write a paragraph or 2 about him, and send it to our webmaster, Dave Delorey dave@delorey.com, so that your comments could be posted in our `Fallen Flags` section of our Division website. Thank you!
Best regards,
Tage Erickson, Seacoast Division President
Published:08 December 2021
Fall President's Message 2021
Hello Fellow Model Railroaders,
It has been a very busy Fall, this year. There has been a lot going on within the NER and the Seacoast Division. The weather has been mostly great as we move into the Winter months. I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving holiday weekend. This is always a good time to take stock of your modeling efforts as we all prepare to spend more time indoors. Hopefully, there is much progress to be made in that regard. I have a good deal of information to pass on to you, so let`s get to it!
Eastern Maine Model Railroad Club Train Show
On Saturday, November 20, 2021,Jack Lutzand I spent the day at the EMMRC Train Show in Brewer, ME. The show was a great success based on the number of attendees that I saw. We were busy for almost the entire day, meeting new prospective members and chatting with many of our current members. The EMMRC has a great modular layout that they set up, in addition to all the vendors and other folks like us, with displays. It`s nice to be doing shows again!
Seacoast Division Website
Our new Division Webmaster,Dave Delorey, is feverishly working on upgrading our website. I encourage you to keep checking the website's home pagehttps://seacoastnmra.com/for new material. There are lots of areas on the website where we depend on input from our members. If you have anything that you feel is newsworthy, please get the information to Dave and we will get it posted. Additionally, Seacoast MemberJim Seroskie, has volunteered to assume the position of NER Webmaster. Both Jim and Dave have been working diligently to improve the content and usability of both websites. We are extremely fortunate to have them both, with their technical knowledge, in our Division. If you have any ideas about improvements to either website, please get them to me ASAP. Thank you!
Faulter Fund
Recently, the Faulter Fund was able to provide some needed funding that supported one of our member`s grandson`s efforts to control the trains on his layout. Support like this is exactly what the Faulter Fund was designed to do. By being able to operate his layout better, he should be able to have better operating sessions with friends, which may attract more young people into this great hobby. As a reminder, the Faulter Fund is available for all of our members to use, as long as that use will be for something that can potentially attract and hopefully keep young people in our hobby. I would like to encourage all members to pay attention in your own community and in your own family for situations where you think a young model railroader would benefit from some support from the Faulter Fund. If you have questions or need clarification, please contact me.
Division By-Laws Revision
In accordance with Article XIII, Amendments of the Division`s Bylaws, the Board of Directors has approved the specific language of a proposed amendment to the bylaws that will modernize the annual director election process enabling many more members of the division to vote each year, regardless of travel distances and health concerns, by revising Article XII`s paragraphs 4, 5, and 6. This proposed amendment was sent out to all members via email or postal mail on November 19, 2021, and will remain posted for 45 days on the Division`s website.All members are invited to comment. Please contact me with any suggestions or questions.
All members will be alerted either by email or postal mail prior to a final vote by the Board. The final vote by the Board of Directors will take place at the next BOD meeting, scheduled for January 6, 2022.
Voting Procedures
The election process starts now. The voting procedures for the election are enclosed. We need each of you to please take the time to open the enclosed document and read it very thoroughly. There are two ways to vote, by mail and by e-mail.Please follow the instructions carefully. We would like everyone to have the opportunity to vote. This year, we are fortunate to have 4 candidates for the 3 positions on the Board of Directors. Please review the bios for the 4 candidates and vote accordingly. If there is another Division member that you would like to vote for, please enter that person`s name on your ballot. All the ballots must be in the possession of the Division Secretary by Wednesday, January 5, 2022.
This message and the Division Voting Procedures will also be listed on the Division web site,Seacoast Division Methods of Voting. The election results will be announced at the Winter Event/Zoom meeting on January 15, 2022, and also published on the Division web site. Your vote is important!
Please take the time to vote!
In closing, l just wanted to say that it has been a pleasure to have had the opportunity to be your Division President for the past 3 1/2 years. I have learned a lot about our hobby and met many new friends and acquaintances. Together, we have accomplished many things that will help keep the Division a strong and vibrant organization for many years to come. I am very grateful for the help and cooperation that you have all shown to me during this time. Thank you very much for that! I still hope to continue to be of some service to the Division by assuming the role of Faulter Fund Committee Chairman. So you will still be hearing from me from time to time.
Thank you! I hope to see all of you at our next Winter Event/Zoom meeting on January 15, 2022. I wish you all a very happy Holiday Season!
Best regards,
Tage Erickson, Seacoast Division President
Published:01 December 2021
Seacoast Division Methods of Voting - 2021
Seacoast Division Methods of Voting - 2021
Published:01 December 2021
Published:26 November 2021
Limited-Edition, HO scale freight cars for sale
Link to Web Site:
Published:31 October 2021
Board of Directors Candidates for 2022
Summary of Board of Directors Candidates for 2022
Published:22 October 2021
Early Fall President's Message 2021
Greetings Model Railroaders,
The Summer of 2021 is officially behind us, and Fall has arrived. The weather has been really good lately, and the trees are beginning to turn color. I hope that you have been making progress on your layout or favorite modeling project. I have two specific items that I want to cover with each of you today and then some quick updates. The first item is progress with our Seacoast Division Clinic Database, and the second item is Seacoast Division funding. Both of these items are vitally important to maintaining a healthy and functioning Division.
Seacoast Division Clinic Database
As I mentioned in my last President's message: "Our quarterly events are the main focus of our Division activities. The purpose of these events is to provide modeling information that our members can take home with them that helps each of us with our own personal modeling efforts. The clinics and presentations that we provide at these events are done by our members. Over the years, many of you have contributed your considerable talents and energy towards developing these educational presentations."
If you have done a presentation/clinic for our Division (or another Division or convention) in the past, and are still capable of doing it again, or have updated your presentation with new information, or have a completely new presentation, then I am respectfully requesting that you contact our Division Clinic Coordinator, Jack Lutz, so that he can add it to our new clinic database. Jack can be reached at 207 605-0037 or by email at.
This database will be extremely helpful to the Division as we move ahead with planning for our future Division Events. To date, the database is beginning to take shape. Over 100 clinics done in the past have been identified, so far. Some of you have come forward with your information and we are very grateful for that. We specifically need clinic information from Seacoast events prior to 2017. We would also like to hear from any member that has a specific idea for a clinic that could be presented at a future event. For those of you that have presented clinics in the past, Jack will be contacting you to see if you are willing to present an updated version of your clinic at a future event.
So again, let's pitch in and help Jack get this database going. This will ultimately help the organizers of our future Seacoast Division Quarterly Events, which in turn, will help each of us with our individual modeling efforts. Thank you!
Seacoast Division Funding
At the last BOD meeting, our Division Treasurer reported a balance of $5,504.46 in our Division account. This is a good thing, of course, and shows that the Division is financially solvent with a reasonable amount of funds. Over the years, these funds have enabled us to support our Division Events plus whatever else we have needed money for. The last large fund raising for this Division was in the year that the Division sponsored the Annual NER Convention at Laconia, New Hampshire in 2013. We have been slowly draining these funds from our account since then.
Please be assured, that your Division Officers and Board members do everything we can to minimize any costs to the Division. Each year, we spend approximately $500 or so, for rental hall charges, train show table reservations, postage and other assorted expenditures. We have been fortunate up to now, that the costs for our meeting venues have been minimal. In a post-covid19 world, this may not always be the case. We have had no fund raising efforts since the Laconia convention, which is now about 8 years ago. While we are not in a financial crisis at this time, we do need to stop hemorrhaging money like this each year. If nothing is done, we will eventually have a problem. So how do we replenish our treasury and keep it at approximately the same level?
Well, we could volunteer to host another NER convention at some point in the future. The NER would absolutely love us to do that. But in my 3 years as your President, I have seen very little interest from Division members for sponsoring another convention. We could sponsor our own Model Train Show each year. The Hub Division does this and makes out quite well, financially. This would require a bunch of people and considerable effort in order to organize and run it each year. They have the assets and a large membership which can get it done. But we really don't need that much cash each year, in order to break even. We just need to take in enough money so that we break even or show a small net gain.
At the past couple of BOD meetings, your Officers and Board members have agreed to a few things that will help get us going in the right direction.
1. Beginning with the 2021 Fall Event, we will have a donation jar in a prominent location in the venue. We are asking each member to consider a donation of $5.00. This is just that, a donation. There is no requirement for anyone to contribute. But if you can help out, please consider a donation of any amount, large or small. It will certainly help to defray our costs.
2. For those of you that cannot attend our Events but still wish to contribute, we have recently opened an account with PayPal. Once it is fully set up, you will be able to go to our Division website and use a link which will take you to PayPal, where you can donate and have your contribution go directly into our Division treasury. We are working this process right now and hope to have it available very soon. We will notify all members when this happens. Remember, the Seacoast Division is a legitimate IRS 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. All donations to the Seacoast Division are fully tax deductible.
3. We are planning to have a Silent Auction at the 2022 Winter Event, much the same as we did for the Chip Faulter Fund a few years ago. The proceeds from this auction will go directly into the Division treasury. If you have any excess model railroad equipment that you are willing to donate to the Division, please consider being a part of the auction. If the auction is declared a financial success, we will likely do this every year. There will be more information about the silent auction coming in the months ahead.
Hopefully, these efforts will prove successful. Time will tell. We have a great organization with some very talented and great members. It shouldn't take too much to get our treasury where it needs to be. Thank you for your attention and hopefully your generosity.
Convention Update
In my last message, I said that I would have an update for you, regarding the NER convention. This will be quick. The convention is still a GO. It is happening! You must be appropriately vaccinated in order to attend and you must wear a mask at all times while inside the convention areas of the hotel and while attending any indoor convention event at other venues. I am planning to attend and I hope to see some of you there.
Fall Event Update
The Seacoast Division will hold its 2021 Fall Event on October 23, 2021 at the Greater Wakefield Resource Center (GWRC), which is located at 254 Main St., Union, NH. This will be our first in-person event since the pandemic began. We have a great program in store for you. We are also planning to broadcast this Event via Zoom, for those of you that cannot attend in person. Please consider attending. Glenn Mitchell with be sending out the information for the Event very soon.
So that's it for now. Please let me know what your concerns are, or if you have any questions, comments or suggestions.
Best regards,
Tage Erickson
Seacoast Division President
Published:24 September 2021
Late Summer President's Message 2021
Hello to all Seacoast Division members out there!
It has indeed been a while since I sent out a message to you. We do have some information to pass on to you, most of which is very good news. I hope that you all have been enjoying your summer and the warm weather. Maybe you have also been able to accomplish some work on your favorite modeling project, and perhaps make good progress on your layout. I continue to make slow progress on my layout helix construction, along with a few decoder installations, while getting in a few rounds of golf each week. So enough about me, let`s get this started!
Seacoast Division Clinic Database
Our quarterly events are the main focus of our Division activities. The purpose of these events is to provide modeling information that our members can take home with them that helps each of us with our own personal modeling efforts. The clinics and presentations that we provide at these events are done by our members. Over the years, many of you have contributed your considerable talents and energy towards developing these educational presentations.
At our most recent Board of Directors meeting, we decided that it would be a very good idea to do some research and develop a listing of all those members that have presented clinics, going back at least 10 years or more if possible. Our Seacoast Division Director, Jack Lutz, has graciously agreed to take on this task and become our Division Clinic Coordinator. If in the past, you have done a presentation/clinic for our Division, and are still capable of doing it again, or have updated your presentation with new information, or have a completely new presentation, then Jack would like to hear from you so that he could add it to our new clinic database.
If you don`t get in touch with Jack, then Jack will likely be getting in touch with you so that your information can be updated. Jack can be reached at (207) 605-0037 or by email at. This database will be extremely helpful to the Division as we move ahead with planning for our future Division Events. In fact, our next Quarterly Event will be on October 23, 2021 at the Greater Wakefield Resource Center (GWRC), which is located at 254 Main St., Union, NH, and we still need clinics for that event. I would like to encourage each of you to consider making up a presentation or clinic that could possibly be used at one of our upcoming quarterly events. So let`s pitch in and help Jack get this database going. This will ultimately help the organizers of our future Seacoast Division Quarterly Events, which in turn, will help each of us with our individual modeling efforts. Thank you!
New Seacoast Division Webmaster
It is my pleasure to inform you that the Seacoast Division has a new webmaster. Seacoast member Dave Delorey has graciously agreed to take over the task of being our webmaster. Dave has been doing this type of work for many years and brings a wealth of knowledge to his new duties. Thank you Dave! I would also like to thank our outgoing webmaster, Steve Russo, for his dedication and service these past years. Steve has done a terrific job for us with our website! Steve, we are all grateful for the effort and time that you put into it.
If you have an article or some photos, or a paragraph or two about your latest modeling project, please consider having it posted on our website. We are always interesting in seeing the talent in our Division posted in a place that all can see and benefit from. Please contact Dave atif you have something that can be posted on our Division website.
Concord Model Railroad Club Train Show
On August 15, 2021, the Concord Model Railroad Club held its annual model train show at the Everett Arena in Concord, NH. I am happy to say that the Seacoast Division was well represented at the show. Glenn Mitchell and I set up our Division display and spent the day chatting with potential members and many of our regular members. Let me say that it was a real pleasure to see our members in person, again. We all had a lot to chat about and it seemed to make the day go very quickly. Throughout the day, we were assisted at our display table by Directors Mike Pedersen and Jay Ehlen, along with our Secretary, Nelson Lemay. Thanks for the help, guys! At the end of the day, our efforts were rewarded as Glenn was able to sign up 2 new members. So it was a really good day and really nice to be doing an in-person event.
The next train show that the Division is supporting will be the Eastern Maine Model Railroad Club train show which will take place on Saturday November 20, 2021 at Jeff`s Catering in Brewer, ME. Please come and enjoy the show and stop by the Division display and say hi.
Members In The News
As many of you know, last year in the May 2020 issue of Model Railroader magazine, Seacoast member Tom Oxnard`s Boston & Maine layout was featured on the cover and included a terrific 10 page article written by Tom, where he describes in detail all the different aspects of his layout and how it was constructed. We are certainly fortunate to have Tom as a member of our Division. In addition to all the great clinics that he has presented to the Division throughout the years, he has been serving as our AP Coordinator for New Hampshire, as well. Recently this year, Tom was elected to be the At Large Northern Director for the NMRA Northeastern Region (NER). Tom, on behalf of all of our Division members, I wish to congratulate you on this achievement and to thank you very much for all your contributions to the Seacoast Division, the NMRA, and to our wonderful hobby. Well done!
Recently, one of our Division members was kind enough to supply me with a few back issues of Railroad Model Craftsman magazine. As I was thumbing though the pages of the May 2021 issue, I noticed an 8 page article, written by Seacoast Division member Victor Hand, describing his massive scratch built `Harmon Coal Dock` that is part of his awesome New York Central layout. This is an absolutely beautiful structure and I have included a picture of it below. You may recall that Victor was kind enough to provide a virtual tour of his layout for last year`s virtual NER convention. If you can get a copy of the May 2021 issue of RMC, please read the article. And a hearty thank you to Victor for sharing his modeling expertise with us. Well done!
Seacoast Division Fall Event
As I mentioned above, your Seacoast Division will be holding our Fall Event at the Greater Wakefield Resource Center (GWRC), which is located at 254 Main St., Union, New Hampshire on Saturday, October 23, 2021 at 10:00 am. We are looking forward to conducting our first in-person meeting since the pandemic began. The Event will also be broadcast via Zoom for those that can`t make it in person. Box lunches will be available at the venue, but will have to be ordered ahead of time. Also, we still need a few people to do clinics for this event. Glenn Mitchell will be sending out more detailed information in his upcoming meeting announcement, which will include our Division Vaccination/Mask policy for those that attend the Event in person. Please consider showing up in person for this Event, and if you have a clinic that you would like to share with your fellow members, please contact Glenn Mitchell ASAP.
The format of the Event will be similar to our past in-person events with the exception of the following item. We will be placing a donations basket at a prominent location in the meeting hall. The purpose of this is to offset the costs of using the venues for our quarterly events and other administrative costs that we incur from time to time, that are slowly bleeding off money from our treasury. We are certainly not in any financial difficulties, but we have no way to replenish the funds in the treasury unless we do something like this. While this is strictly voluntary, we hope you will consider donating a few bucks, for those that attend in person. I will be sending out a separate email that discusses our current options for fund raising and how you can donate to the Division.
Seacoast Division 2022 Elections
As you all know, we have our annual elections coming up soon. Our Division Nominating committee chairman, Bruce Campbell, has sent out 2 emails with regard to our current situation. Each year, we vote to elect/reelect 3 of our members to positions on the Division Board of Directors. This year, 2 of the 3 Board members that are due for reelection, will not be on the ballot. This means that we must have some volunteers from the membership who are willing to step up and possibly become members of our Division Board. I ask you all to consider doing this.
Being a Board member is really not all that difficult. It is a terrific way to meet other members of the Division and to get to know them. Yes, it will require you to attend Board meetings. These are done virtually on Zoom and therefore do not require travel. The Board meets about 8 times each year, usually on a normal week day, to provide oversight for Division events and coordination. It is a way for you to step up and get a bit more involved in the functioning of the Division. You will need to be able to attend most Division functions in person and be willing to help coordinate things that make the Division function. If you are considering this, please go on-line to the Division website and read the appropriate section of the Division Bylaws that define the duties of a Board member. We need a few good men/women!
In addition to needing 2 new Board members, the new Division Board will be electing a new Division President for 2022. After much thought, I have decided to not run for Division President again. After 3+ years as your President, it is time for someone else to lead the Division. I am finding that many of the things that I want to accomplish in my life, will require time, that I do not presently have to give. So something must go. My plate is simply too full. Additionally, there are some medical issues which my wife and I must now deal with for the foreseeable future. I wish to thank each and every member for your support during these past 3 years. We have accomplished a lot. It has been a terrific experience, to be the President of the Seacoast Division, and I am grateful for the opportunity to have served the Division. After the new President takes office in January 2022, it is my hope that I can become the Chairman of the Faulter Fund Committee and continue to be of some service. Thank you again, for all your support.
Upcoming Board of Directors Meetings
The next virtual meeting of the Seacoast Division Board of Directors will be on Thursday, September 2, 2021 at 10:00 AM via Zoom. If you have an issue that you want to bring before the Board or you just want to sit in on the meeting, please contact me and I will send you the meeting log-in information.
The next virtual meeting of the Northeastern Region Board of Directors will be on Sunday, August 29, 2021. I will be attending that meeting, at which time I hope to receive an update on the planning for the upcoming NER Convention in Westford, MA. As most of you know, the NER Convention will take place over the Columbus Day weekend this year. My plan is to send out a Convention update to you once I have the information.
So I guess that`s enough. That`s all I have for the time being. Thanks for taking the time to read this, and I hope to see many of you at our Fall Event on October 23rd.
Best regards,
Tage Erickson
Seacoast Division President
Victor Hand`s Harmon Coal Dock
Published:23 August 2021
