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Reply to "Model Railroader, No Longer with Us, Who Impacted You and Why"

Joe Hohmann posted:
Greg Houser posted:

For me it was Owen Sturm:

When I got back into the hobby I met Owen at the first breakfast prior to the Allentown First Frost meet.  During the breakfast we got to talking and I mentioned how I was having problems getting some scenery just the way I liked it, specifically, the inside detailing of tunnels.  Fast forward several months to the Spring Thaw meet and he shows up with a CD he burned showing me the techniques and examples of what he had done on his layout.  This was totally unexpected as I only had met him ONE time previously and had NO communication with him since our initial conversation.   This lead to a friendship which ended far too soon.  He was a true gentleman and a class act and I miss him to this day.

-Greg

Me, also. Owen was always so happy, which impressed me since I often come across as a grump. The last time I saw him was at York. He said, "Hey Joe, are you avoiding me?" I think of him often. 

When I saw the title of this post, this was the first person I thought of as well. I was in this hobby most of my life, but never really had anyone to share it with until I found this forum and went to my first Allentown Breakfast. There were a few guys there who were very welcoming, including Owen. He (and a few of the other guys, who's names I won't mention to keep from embarrassing them, but if you've ever been to the breakfast, you know the guys I mean) made sure I was involved in the conversation, and exposed me to several new aspects of the hobby. This was a big deal to a teenager who always felt like he was odd for having this hobby. I would run into Owen at a few events throughout the year, and he'd always ask me what I was doing on my layout, and share what he was doing on his. We would bounce ideas off each other (more me bouncing ideas off him and him telling me what he was doing), and just have a good time every time we saw each other. 

The last time I saw him was after a York Forum Presentation. I saw him talking to some other guys whom I didn't know, so I was waiting patiently to talk to him, when he motioned to me and said something like "hey kid, well come over here" (he never remembered my name, but he remembered me and my layout). I had a great time and regret not staying to talk to him longer. Every now and then I still think I hear his voice or see him out of the corner of my eye at a train show. 

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