WMRC Social Media Director Paul Ullrich was awarded the President Shield award for rebranding the club's image with his graphic design work. He has redesigned the club's logo, the logo for The Lantern, the club's official publication, the poster for the spring train show and the stickers the club hands out at train shows.
This is the second time Paul has won this award. In 2016 he won the award for his work as social media director for the club in creating the blog and the Facebook page.
The fun starts at 7:30 PM on Friday, January 10 in the Tank Room at the Charleswood Legion, 6003 Roblin Boulevard. The canteen will be open, and we will have our usual mode land photo displays and a 50/50 draw. Guests are always warmly welcomed. Hope to see you there!
WMRC social media director Paul Ullrich won the first ever Robert Weaver memorial award for his contributions to The Lantern, the official publication of the club. The award was announced at the club's AGM and banquet in May, but he was nowhere to be found.
Paul was gallivanting around southern Ontario on a Fehr-Way motor coach tour, which included stops at the Ottawa Tulip Festival, the 1000 Islands and Niagara Falls. After he returned, he went rail fanning with Larry and long time WMRC member Gary Stepnick, who is also the president of the Winnipeg Railway Museum.
Larry, who is no stranger to gallivanting himself, brought the trophy and the plaque along with them. He hid it in the trunk in a CN reusable shopping bag. When they arrived at Harte, Larry surprised Paul by presenting him with the award. With the grain elevator in the background and a CN freight train underneath them while they stood on the overpass, it was the perfect place for a photo op!
The Robert Weaver award was created by the WMRC to honour the late Robert Weaver, former editor of The Lantern. Robert edited the publication for 13 years, the longest tenure of any Lantern editor. This award replaces The Lantern award. The award is given to one member each year for their contributions to The Lantern.
Paul was also very happy that he got to keep the CN reusable shopping bag.
They first witnessed this eastbound train barreling through Grant's Cut, just outside of Rivers. Then they spotted it just outside of Justice, Manitoba. It showed up for a third time by the Hart grain elevator, then for the last time at Portage La Prairie.
All of these photos were taken on bridges, but Gary was on ground level at Portage when he saw them pass by. He reported that all of the passenger cars were empty, so it was assumed that they were being taken to CN headquarters in Montreal.
WMRC social media director Paul Ullrich cycled over to the CP yards last week and took these shots from Jarvis Avenue, the parking lot of the strip mall on McPhillips Street and the aqueduct off of Logan Avenue overlooking the Weston shops. He stayed at a safe distance away from railroad property and used a 25X zoom lens to capture the action. Pleased be advised that the rail lines are private property and take trespassing very seriously.
Long time WMRC member Roger Kiendl passed away in Regina earlier this year.
Roger was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. He had a long career in electronics and worked for companies such as Bulova, Gulf and Western, Curtis Wright and the Westinghouse Corporation. He was the designer and Project Engineer for the nuclear reactor rod control system installed on the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Enterprise.
He met his wife Beverley, a nursing student from Manitoba, while she was working at Mount Sinai Hospital in Manhattan. They were married in 1963 and moved Winnipeg in 1971. He worked as the sales manager of video systems for Servo Electronic Systems, providing television systems for Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario until he retired in 1999.
Roger was a member of the WMRC and the NMRA for close to 40 years. He attended the NMRA national convention in Winnipeg in 1983 and TLR conventions in 1996, 2003, 2006, 2008 and 2010. When the TLR’s local group, No. 1 Northern Division, was in danger of being delisted he was a driving force in helping the group’s reorganization.
Roger saved the lives of three of his fellow WMRC members Arnie Walker, Norm Leathers and Paul Ullrich in 2003 when they were travelling to the TLR convention in Thunder Bay. When it was his turn driving, a moose suddenly walked onto the Trans Canada Highway east of Dryden. He expertly swerved, braked, and honked, scaring the moose out of the way.
Roger was on the organizing committee for the 2010 TLR convention in Winnipeg. He came up with the name of the convention, “Steam on the Prairies”. He was a tireless and dedicated volunteer for this convention, assisting in securing the venue, the rental of the Prairie Dog Central Railway, choosing the restaurant for the banquet, renting the bus for the rail fan trip to Portage La Prairie and the rental of the banquet tables for the Friday night barbecue.
Roger was also a member of the Winnipeg Rotary Club, the Winnipeg Chamber of Commerce, the Winnipeg Executives Association, the Manitoba Protective Officers Association, the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers, and was a Board member for St. Amant. When the WMRC was seeking a charity to sponsor, it was Roger who recommended St. Amant.
He and former WMRC Treasurer Dennis Rietze designed the modules for the No. 1 Northern Division’s Free-Mo modular layout. Roger continued to be active in the TLR and the WMRC until Beverly’s passing in 2014. He moved to Regina in 2015 to be closer to his son, Anthony. He died peacefully in Regina at age 85.
