A Special Message from the President of Friends, John Tews

The Purchase of the Paul Averdung Trolley Collection Begins

October 22, 1998

    Friends of the East Troy Railroad Museum, Inc. is embarking on yet another ambitious fundraising project, the next vital piece in fulfilling its mission of preserving and operating the historic East Troy railroad line. Most of the rail equipment running on the line is in a private collection, as is the typical way that museums of any kind get their initial group of artifacts. Also like most museums, Friends now finds itself able to purchase this collection, along with the parts and accessories that have been accumulated with it over the past quarter-century.

    This has been Friends’ objective all along, as proclaimed in the Mission Statement. The first phases of this plan included the purchase of the railroad itself, which was successfully accomplished four years ago. Since then, Friends has also worked to make major improvements in the physical plant. A comprehensive track renovation was completed in early 1997. A doubling in size of the East Troy Shop and Carbarn, along with enlarging the main yard was also completed in mid-1997. Many other projects were executed as well. Plus, Friends has joined with the Interurban Car 26 Restoration Association to assist in a magnificent rebuild of the beautiful WP&L 26.  Future phases include the takeover of the Wisconsin Trolley Museum operation and the construction of a new Visitor Center and other interpretive sites that will help us better show the history and impact of the East Troy Line and the electric railroad industry.

    Now it is time to announce that Friends has begun the process of purchasing the rest of the railcars that operate the East Troy Electric Railroad. An initial sale of eight pieces, totaling $100,000, will be closed during November, 1998. Furthermore, according to the terms of this agreement, Friends will continue to purchase more cars as funds are raised. To this end, Friends has established the Trolley Collection Fund. This is money donated specifically for car purchases and is restricted by Board resolution for this purpose. What this means is that if you can find a way to make a donation that will cover the purchase of any of the available vehicles, it will then go directly into Friends’ ownership. As Friends is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation, your donation will be tax-deductible.

    There was a matching donation challenge of up to $20,000 offered by Paul Averdung.  Money donated before the end of 1998 was matched by this, effectively doubling the size of your donations.  This opportunity resulted in an inspiring jumpstart for the fundraising campaign, netting over $750 in dedicated private donations (resulting in a gain for the fund of $1,500) in the first weekend, and over $11,000 overall.

    Furthermore, many companies match their employees’ donations with equal amounts. As an example, Wisconsin Electric Power Company has donated thousands of dollars through this method, as a result of Friends’ member donations being matched. Ask at your place of employment about this possibility.

    The good news is that this plan is underway, and things are happening already. Titles will be being transferred shortly, and these precious pieces of electric railroading history will be brought under the ownership of an organization dedicated to the preservation of their heritage and which has a proven record of accomplishment. Friends has already raised nearly $400,000 in the last five years towards its goals. At this juncture, another of those goals is plainly within reach. Your donations and other fundraising assistance will help Friends complete this phase of its mission and take the next step into the future.

John H. Tews
President,
Friends of East Troy Railroad Museum, Inc.

(A special note:  As of December 1st, 2000, all of the cars have been purchased.  By the end of December, 2000, the rest of the assets of the operating corporation were also brought into Friends' ownership.)