Saturday — September 20, 2008 — 10:00 a.m.Durand Union Station, 200 Railroad Street Durand MI 48429
Please join us as we celebrate another successful year and look forward to the next. These are exciting times for passenger trains and MARP is working hard to seize the opportunities for improving and expanding Michigan train services.
* * * FLASH ! * * *
Ross B. Capon, executive director of the National Association of Railroad Passengers (NARP) will be the featured speaker at Durand Union Station this coming Saturday!
He has much news – some of it very good – from the Washington DC scene where many of our Congressional leaders are becoming real advocates for a strong passenger rail system throughout the nation.
The occasion for Mr. Capon’s presentation is the 35th Annual Meeting of the Michigan Association of Railroad Passengers. Many of you have already made your reservations and we thank you. For those of you who have been procrastinating, it’s not too late! Treasurer Dave Randall will be accepting your $20 registration fee at the door beginning at 9:45 am this Saturday, September 20.
Following Mr. Capon’s talk and discussion of MARP’s plans for expanding train service in Michigan, we will enjoy each other’s company over a delicious catered luncheon. Click for an agenda. We have also invited State Representative Lee Gonzales to talk with us about our plans to add new train capacity across Michigan and to expand high speed rail east of Kalamazoo. Rep. Gonzales is chair of the House Appropriations Transportation Sub-committee. He is also a member of the Midwest Interstate Passenger Rail Commission www.miprc.org which met recently with Congressional leaders about the future of Amtrak. Following this discussion and reports of the year’s activities, we will enjoy a catered lunch and conversation with our fellow MARP members.
Historic and beautiful Durand Union Station is not to be missed. Extensive museum exhibits, an archive of railroading documents, and an impressive model train layout will all be open to us following our meeting, so plan to spend the afternoon.
A downloadable registration form is available on the website www.marp.org or on the back page of The Michigan Passenger which you recently received in the mail. Registrations must be received by September 12.
PLEASE E-MAIL marprail@yahoo.com IF YOU ARE PLANNING TO COME AND HAVE NOT PREVIOUSLY SENT IN YOUR RESERVATION.
If you would like to carpool with others from you area, please contact Rich Vavra-Musser at Doottime@sbcglobal.net or phone 269-556-0576
Make your train reservations at www.amtrak.com. Contact kay.chase@wmich.edu if you are arriving on Friday evening.
Accommodations are available at the Quality Inn of Durand, 8511 East Lansing Rd, Durand, MI 48429, 989-288-0638 www.choicehotels.com
To learn more about Durand Union Station, visit www.durandstation.org
On Saturday, September 20, the Steam Railroading Institute in nearby Owosso MI is celebrating “Hobo Days” with many railroad related activities and a chance to have your picture taken on the Pere Marquette #1225 Steam Locomotive that was the model for the steam engine in the Christmas classic movie The Polar Express. Visit www.mstrp.com
For other events in the area, visit www.shiawassee.org