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Peoria Rail Fest 2005
A most enjoyable gathering occurred in Peoria Saturday October
15th. Table set-up for the swap meet was facilitated by the
additional time available Friday evening for dealers to get their wares
ready.
Joining the dealer tables were the Illinois Terminal
Historical Society and the Terminal Railroad Association Historical
Society. Our own society tables were full of merchandise for
visitors to browse through and purchase.
Several new members were added to our rolls, and a
number of persons with family connections to the GM&O stopped by to see
what we are all about. They all walked away smiling...
 The banquet later that evening was attended by 32
persons who were treated to an informative talk given by guest speaker
Daniel LaKemper, General Counsel for Pioneer Railcorp.
The current state of short line railroading, the climate following
deregulation which fostered the short line boon, and the future outlook
for growth in the short line industry covered a lot of ground--all of it
interesting. Additional information cited by Mr. LaKemper during
his presentation may be found at
www.pioneer-railcorp.com and
www.iowarail.com
. A highlight of the evening was the passing of the Blue Lantern
Award. Previous holder of this award for outstanding
service to the Society, Dave Wagner, presented the Lantern to Ken
Donnelly for his tireless involvement in creation of Society car
projects, coordination of Society events, and publication of the
News. Ken joins Dave and Dick Wallin as Blue Lantern
Award recipients. The lantern itself is a 'traveling'
award and will find its way into the hands of another deserving
member sometime in the future. This year's beautiful slide show was
presented by Joe Petric who took viewers on a personal journey from his
childhood days in Joliet where his father worked for the GM&O, to more
far-flung locales as he grew to become more mobile. Joe made a
point to ride on GM&O passenger trains as they marched towards their
ultimate demise, and captured their images all along the way. Thanks
to all those persons that made this year's Annual Meeting a great
success.
For coverage of model contest entries, go over to the
Modeler's Corner page. |
