Category: News

Alex Brikoff

The 4th Division Education Committee is in need of volunteers to work on the 4th Division Video Library. Stu Rogers, the current video librarian, is stepping down and would like to turn the video library over to someone else. The Education Committee will be taking charge of the library and making some improvements to the service coverage as well as the efficiency of the library. Here’s our plan:

The 4th Division Education Committee has several projects that it will be working on over the next several months. Improving the Video Library is one of them.

1. Find a new Video Library Chairman to work with me to find three additional dedicated volunteers to administer the library. The new video library chairman will take over Stu’s current duties that will include the following:

2. These four volunteers should be able to meet the following requirements:

3. Each of these four video librarians should live in each of the four geographic directions with Seattle being at the center. By this I mean, one should live north of Seattle, another east of Seattle and the third and fourth should live in the other two directions respectively.

If you would like to be a part of this project and participate in this 4th Division opportunity, or just to find out more about it, please contact me, 425-466-1490 or abrikoff@frontier.com.

Michael Highsmith, 4D Nominating Committee Chair

The 4D Board of Directors is seeking new members to fill the posts of Director 1 and Superintendent. Each is a two-year term commencing in August 2014.

Email me or the other committee members, Scott Buckley or Jeff Moorman with your name, the position you seek and a 250-300 word Candidate Statement by March 7.

Ballots will be sent by April 15.

Russ Segner, Superintendent of 4D/PNR/NMRA

I am calling a meeting of the 4^th Division Board of Directors to be held March 8, 2014 at 10:00 a.m. at Mitzel’s Restaurant, 22330 84^th Ave S, Kent (253) 395-3635.

The major business of this meeting is to deal with two vacancies on the Board. One will be the Director position held by Mike Highsmith prior to his move up to Assistant Superintendent. The term of the position runs through August 31, 2015. The second position is that of Secretary. This is a position appointed by the Superintendent with the concurrence of the BOD.

I have put forward the name of Tina Brikoff for Secretary. If you wish to put your name forth for the vacant Director position, please contact me at russseg@gmail.com. Please be prepared to be at the meeting with a statement of qualifications and why you are interested in serving in the position. After discussion, the BOD will make a selection.

Michael Highsmith, Asst. Super. & Nominating Committee Chair

It is time again for nominations for positions within the 4D PNR Board. The open positions are:

• Superintendent – 2-year term commencing in August 2014
• Director 1 – 2-year term commencing in August 2014
• Director 2 – 1-year term commencing in August 2014 (filling open vacancy for balance of term)

Nominations are open until February 28, 2014. Email your nominations to me or the other committee members, Scott Buckley or Jeff Moorman. Please include your name, the position you are seeking, and a 250-300 word candidate statement. Ballots will be sent to members in good standing by April 15.

Should you have questions, please feel free to email me or call 253-381-3636. Thank you in advance for your time and consideration.

David J. Yadock

The Pacific Science Center has created two 15-second commercials about the upcoming 4D Model Railroad Show January 15-19. Watch for them on Comcast cable.

And it’s never too late to volunteer to help with the show. Get involved! Email me.

Russ Segner

The 4^th Division Board of Directors has a new member. Congratulations to Stu Rogers who has become a Director following the recent changes in our leadership team. At our November Board meeting, Ken Liesse submitted his resignation. As most of you know, Ken has been attending a very heavy load of classes in GPS technologies. So, Ken will continue to hit the books and some of the rest of the leadership will shift their roles and assume new responsibilities. We thank Ken for his years of service to the Division.

As Assistant Superintendent, I succeed Ken for the balance of Ken’s term through August 2014. Russ’ first official act was to appoint Mike Highsmith to fill the Assistant Superintendent post for a two-year term from last August. That means Stu Rogers comes on to the Board as he was the next highest in votes to Mike in our last election. He will complete Mike’s two-year term which ends in August 2015. Stu will also continue as our Video Librarian, a job he has faithfully fulfilled for many years.

All of these officers will need your full support as the Division moves forward. We have a full plate with the Seattle Center Show in January and the PNR Convention in June. If you want to get more involved, talk to any of these three. They will appreciate it.

Walt Huston

The NMRA’s national “Build a Memory” program, which was announced here recently for November, has been postponed a year because of a problem obtaining the necessary materials.

However, Jack Hamilton and I will still be at the Great Train Expo in Puyallup on November 16-17 using donated materials to build an N scale starter layout. We call our program “How To Build A Small Layout.” In addition, we will hold “How to Solder” demonstrations that will include “solder it yourself” workstations to give people some personal experience. We will be assisted in all this by other 4D members, including Al Babinski and Russ Segner. We plan to have a completed layout there as well.

So I hope you’ll stop by, say hello, and maybe do a little hands-on teaching yourself. See you in Puyallup!

Bruce Alcock

It is with great sadness that we must announce the passing of Jim FitzGerald, an early pioneer, President and newsletter editor of NTRAK.

For 40 years, Jim FitzGerald ensured that every other month, NTRAK members received their newsletter with updates on Ntrak standards, activities, events and organizational notices as well as news and information about N scale in general. For many years, Jim FitzGerald was a coordinator for the NTRAK layout at the National Train Show, the public event of the NMRA national convention and that is how many people had a chance to meet him, face-to-face. Jim worked with his wife Lee to help get T-Trak going as an alternative modular standard and today T-Trak continues to grow and thrive as it is used at shows as well as for home layouts.

When Jim first started with NTRAK, N scale was in its infancy and a very small part of model railroading. It was through NTRAK layouts that model railroading and specifically N scale was introduced to the public at shopping malls, hospital and museum shows as well as at train shows. It was NTRAK that took model railroading from the private basement to the pubic venue and it was Jim FitzGerald who helped guide, organize, publicize and encourage the NTRAK clubs that sprung up across the country.

Jim will be sorely missed by all.