trendy train model

   We are very pleased to announce that the Assiniboine Valley Railway is having their next open house this weekend. The trains will be running from 1PM to 4PM on both Saturday and Sunday at 3001 Roblin Boulevard.

    Last weekend, they held their first winter open house since the passing of their founder, the late great Bill Taylor, in August of 2013. Outside of former WMRC President Ed Mulholland's announcement of the AVR's forthcoming open houses at the WMRC's December meeting, there was virtually no publicity for the event (not even a mention on their own website).

    The day after the WMRC's December meeting,  the news was posted on this blog site and on the WMRC's Facebook page. The FB notice got 500 views in just a few hours! Watching the numbers come in was like watching the gas gauge at the pump turn while you're filling up your car! This shows not only the power of social media, but of the interest in the AVR itself!

    We sent our top investigative reporter out to the AVR open house to cover the event last Sunday. As you can see by the photographic evidence, it was business as usual at the AVR! They had steady and respectable crowds on both days, and they're hoping for the same this coming weekend.

    And they'll certainly get that! Another FB post about the AVR on the WMRC's Facebook page has garnered over 4000 views and 50 shares! AVR President Len LaRue was on CBC Radio One's noon program on Wednesday, They gave him a full ten minutes to promote the event! He was also on the CBC 24 Hours supper time news show that night, and the evenwas also promoted on the noon hour radio news on boxing day.

    Riding the AVR at Christmas has become an important Winnipeg traditions for many Winnipeg families. Although the lights aren't up and there are no evening runs, people still want to ride the trains through the forest! And there's still plenty of deers to see while you're enjoying the ride!

   This image, taken by our good friend and WMRC member John Longhurst, now only serves as a sad reminder of what was a wonderful part of Winnipeg's Christmas season that is no more.

     For the second year in a row, the AVR will not be having their Christmas light display. This is because of a lack of resources, manpower, and most significantly, the absence of AVR founder Bill Taylor.

     Bill was the Christmas light master of the AVR. There were 100,000 lights on display, which was TEN TIMES the amount Chevy Chase had on his house in the classic movie, "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation". As the AVR was on his property, he had more time than others to string these lights. He was also the only one who knew the proper electrical schematics for wiring them all together (It's safe to assume that you don't just plug in 100,000 light into an ordinary 110 volt socket, even when they're LEDs).

    It's been a tough year for the AVR, but they managed to hold their usual monthly open houses in 2014. But they weren't able to hold their annual "Dinner Train". Hopefully, the lights will be up again for Christmas in 2015.

In the November issue of The Lantern, the official publication of the WMRC, member John Longhurst authored a moving article about his late brother-in-law Ken Epp's layout, the Cougar River Subdivision. Unfortunately, this publication is only available to members of the WMRC. But you can still view Ken's layout on-line on two links!

The first link is from the Sweden Freezer website. This site was the on-line home of the WMRC until Bill Taylor's passing last year. Bill created and maintained this website for the club, starting at the time when not many of us even had computers, not to mention internet access. The site for his business still exists, but links have been created to re-direct viewers to the new websites for the WMRC and the AVR. However, the link to view Ken's layout still exists! It was last updated in 2003, with several images taken by our own Ron Einarson. View it by clicking here. 

The other site to view Ken's layout is at John Longhurst's own website, the Manitoba and Minnesota subdivision. You can view his tribute to Ken and see several images of his layout by clicking here. 

Nick is seen here in 2005 with his lovely wife Frances at a Thanksgiving supper at WMRC member Marcel Blair's cottage near Lac Du Bonnet. Photo by Morgan Turney.  

   A memorial service for long time Winnipeg Model Railroad Club, NMRA and CNRHA member Nick Andrusiak was held today at the Louis Riel School Division Legacy Centre in Winnipeg. The service's theme was a fall supper, for Nick loved Manitoba's long tradition of fall suppers.
 
   The Legacy Centre (which was formerly the Norberry School Gym) was packed. Nick had many friends, not only from his ties with the model railroading community, but also from his long career as a teacher.

   Nick's daughter gave an excellent power point presentation on the life and times of her father. She worked it from her iPad, which the tech-savvy Nick would've approved of. Several people, including long time WMRC and NMRA member Norm Leathers (who knew Nick since their University days) gave personal tributes and several amusing anecdotes about Nick.

   Nick was a Past President of the WMRC. He was a tireless volunteer for every organization to which he belonged. His house was always a hub of activity for every newsletter, bulletin, and publication that these clubs put out. Although he was an avid rail fan and model railroader, he didn't have a layout himself. When someone asked him why he would join a model railroad club when he didn't have a layout, his reply was "it's because model railroaders are neat".

   Nick also worked behind the scenes for every club he joined. If you received a copy of The Lantern, CN Lines, or The Fusee through the mail, it was often Nick's own personal collection of stamps that brought the issue to your door. When Hilt Friesen and Bill Taylor were Presidents of the WMRC, Nick was the ghost writer for the President's message that appeared in every issue of The Lantern during their tenure.

    Nick was also the club's "parliamentarian". He knew the club's constitution backwards and forwards, and he could answer any question and settle any dispute regarding it's rules and regulations.

   When WMRC Webmaster Paul Ullrich was the Convention Director for the 2010 TLR Convention in Winnipeg, Nick came to his rescue by piggy backing that convention with the CNRHA convention, making it the best attended TLR convention in over a decade.

    There were two Nicks - one was the hale and hearty, larger than life man with the big, booming voice. The other was the wheelchair bound man whose voice was reduced to a whisper. Those who knew him long enough loved and admired both of them. His debilitating ailment might've immobilized him, but it never slowed him down. Throughout his entire life, he never stopped volunteering, contributing, creating or giving.

     Long time WMRC members will fondly recall when Nick was one of the auctioneers at the club's annual auction.  Whenever a box of junky snap-track was on the block, Nick always rose to the occasion and rallied the members with a stirring pitch for the forlorn track. Bellowing from the top of his lungs with a voice that could be heard clear as a bell from his home town of Middlebro, he'd shout, "Ladies and gentlemen, the rails of this track is not made of nickel silver, or tin, or copper, but GENUINE BRASS!"

    It got to be such a familiar routine that several members of the club would say it along with him!

     These are just a few samples of the stories and memories of our dear friend Nick. If you have any other stories and memories that you'd like to share, please send them to Frances Andrusiak at f.andrusiak@shaw.ca

  The Assiniboine Valley Railway's Christmas light display has been cancelled this year. The group is seeking volunteers to help set up their annual Christmas light display for 2014.

   The AVR has always had a small but dedicated number of members who always assisted Bill Taylor in putting up his truly spectacular Christmas Light display, which had over 100,000 lights. It was no exaggeration that his display put Chevy Chase's work in National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation to shame!

    But Bill's untimely passing in August has left a nearly irreplaceable gap in the group. Although his team of volunteers worked tirelessly along side of him, Bill did the Lion's share of the work, mostly because he lived there. Every spare minute he had before the holidays were spent stringing lights, replacing bulbs, and chasing away the squirrels who mistook the knobby LED bulbs for acorns!

   This is not just a rail fan or a model railroad thing. This Christmas display was cherished by all Winnipeggers of all faiths. Thousands of people came every year to see the lights. The possible demise of this annual event even made CBC, CTV and Global news!

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/winnipeg-christmas-train-ride-light-display-cancelled-1.2251848?cmp=rss

http://winnipeg.ctvnews.ca/winnipeg-holiday-tradition-put-on-hold-for-one-year-1.1514942

http://globalnews.ca/news/924609/popular-charleswood-christmas-display-cancelled/

If you can help out for next year, please contact the Assiniboine Valley Railway by going to their website at: http://www.swedenfreezer.com/avr/

    Make no mistake - this the official site, sanctioned by the board.

    Our website used to be at the Sweden Freezer website, which was operated by long term member Bill Taylor. Due to his untimely and unfortunate death, the club needed a new web presence. Our space on the Sweden Freezer website hadn't been updated since the spring of 2013.

    At our request,  Phil Mendelshon, the AVR's present webmaster,  has taken all information pertaining to the WMRC off the website and provided a link to our new website.

   Now when you Google the "Winnipeg Model Railroad Club" with quote marks, this website shows up first, followed by WMRC webmaster's wife Margaret Ullrich's popular events, blog, Winnipeg is Better than Chocolate.   The CP Rail Manitoba and Minnesota Subdivision, a blog operated by long time WMRC member and Winnipeg Free Press faith columnist John Longhurst, shows up as fifth on the list.