HE LION ROARS - Lionel Collectors Club of America

The “Wow!” FactorVisitors walk into my train building andsay, “Holy cow, this train empire is in themiddle of rural Iowa?” What they meanis, “in the middle of nowhere!” Theyjust can’t believe this big train layout isin such a little town. I open the layout atChristmastime and for special occasionswhen people want a tour. When kidscome in here, their eyes get so big thatthey can’t talk. That’s my biggest thrill.I don’t post opening hours, but if peoplewant a tour, they can contact me. I’llbe glad to open it at no charge. Churchand school groups come by, and there’sa monthly VFW breakfast in Leland. Iopen it for that event.The hobby has always fascinated me, andI have a great deal of fun playing with oldtoy trains. If they don’t work, I’ll cleanand lube them and pretty soon, they’rerunning again. I attend train shows with aLCCA member and friend, and we oftenbet on the prospects for fixing an oldertrain.Lifelong LearningEvery time I go to a LCCA Conventionor talk to another club member, I learnsomething new. There’s so muchknowledge within the group. There’s nota Convention that goes by that I don’tcome back with more knowledge. Thereare hobbyists who know 10 or 20 timesmore than I do, and all are eager to talkand share.For me, it’s cool to get kids involved.That often begins with a starter trainset like The Polar Express. Let them gettheir hands on the controls, and the rest,as they say, is history. Better yet, theunfolding of destiny.Photographs by Ray HansenEditor’s postscript: Robertcommissioned a photographer to takepictures of his complete collectionof club-sponsored products. He hascontributed the images to the club foruse in the online photo archive.The Lion Roars 13