A Winnipeg model railroader has been named a member of the Order of Canada

John Longhurst has been named a member of the Order of Canada in December. He is one of 88 Canadians who've received the honour in 2024. He joins more than 8,000 Canadians who have received the country's highest civilian honour.

John, who has been the faith page columnist for the Winnipeg Free Press since 2023 and is also a religion reporter for Canadian Affairs,  won the award for his contributions to the country's religious and spiritual media, his efforts to promote positive interdenominational relations, to reduce hate and to help readers see the humanity in every person. 

But John has always been very well known for his outstanding contributions to the hobby and to Winnipeg's model railroading community. John was the associate editor of Canadian Railway Modeller magazine for many years. He was an active member of the WMRC, where he served as the club's publicity director. He has a model railroad blog, titled the CP Rail Manitoba and Minnesota Subdivision, which has had over one million viewers. 

In 1998, John and his brother-in-law, the late Ken Epp, founded the Great Canadian Train Show, which became Manitoba's largest train show, and ran until 2012. He was the convention director for the 2005 Canadian Association of Railway Modellers annual national convention, titled Golden Rails, which was the only the second time the city had hosted a national model railroad convention.