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As everybody probably heard our very own Marty Fitzhenry has succumbed to cancer.  Marty was larger than life  He was a good man that deserves any accolade from us.  You all probably saw the nice memorial that MTH had on their website or  any of the ones that were posted here.  Unfortunately these memorials will disappear with time  I would like to propose that we all kick in to memorialize Marty in a permanent way.  The TCA museum in Lancaster has a program that lets you place a name on a brick at the entrance to the museum.  I would like to use the largest amount of bricks the museum ever had for one person  They will allow us to use 40 bricks at a cost of $100 a brick.  

Last edited by bluelinec4
Original Post

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gmorlitz posted:

TY. I'm in. I have no idea about the timing, but it would be nice if we could have a dedication at York in October.

Gerry

Great idea.  Perhaps consider a formal presentation to the TCA Museum at the "Thursday before York."  MTH will be there for their presentation, maybe they would like to do something related to the memorial on their website.

bluelinec4 posted:
RJT posted:

Ben, Can the memorial tribute include his caregiver Dot, she was there for him to the end and should have a mention in the memorial?

To tell you the truth I havent even thought of the layout or content of the bricks  I wanted to raise the money first and then work with the museum to come up with a design

That would be the ideal thing, money first, design second. I'm sure that it will come together pretty easily after that.

Thank you everyone that contributed    I plan on calling the museum today  Since there is extra money in the Go Fund Me account a few here have suggestions for its use.  I started this specifically for Marty.  I dont want to take away from any of the other friends that have passed but this wasnt started for them.  All money will be given to the Toy Train Museum in Martys name whether its for the bricks or an extended donation. If anybody wants to start another collection for other memorials go right ahead.   If the Museum allows more bricks I will expand Marty's piece.  I just took a shot at a design but am not sure if the museum could do it this way.  So until I discuss it with them this is what I had in mind  If anybody has any suggestions I will entertain changes

brick presentation

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bluelinec4 posted:

Thank you everyone that contributed    I plan on calling the museum today  Since there is extra money in the Go Fund Me account a few here have suggestions for its use.  I started this specifically for Marty.  I dont want to take away from any of the other friends that have passed but this wasnt started for them.  All money will be given to the Toy Train Museum in Martys name whether its for the bricks or an extended donation.

Could not have said it better.

Thank You for thinking about and doing this.

Tunnel Inn Mike posted:

Ben, Since Marty loves electrics, could we possibly add a catenary pole or two? I’m sure other forum members could add some even better options.

Congratulations  on a job well done to honor a truly great guy.

Mike

I thought of that but the museum has specific clip art that it offers  No electrics or catenary   I dont even know if they could do the railroad track border.  I also thought of adding some type of accolade in text on there just couldnt think of one

Last edited by bluelinec4

Ben

I am the person who first mentioned honoring Dotty. I gave my donation as a memorial to Marty F. and feel your design is just fine.

 MY practice in donating memorials --church, Hospice,etc, is to mention honor of the caregiver, spouse, significant other or whomever.

I did not know how you could include Dotty on Marty's brick and apologize for the confusion.

However, she should be recognized and honored for her extraordinary care of Marty..Perhaps a single row of bricks next to the 40 bricks for Marty. I will gladly donate if it can happen. There is no question in my mind that Marty honored and appreciated Dotty over the time that I saw their photos and videos.

Otherwise I thank you for your idea and work and will leave the issue alone.

 

Last edited by Dewey Trogdon
Dewey Trogdon posted:

Ben

I am the person who first mentioned honoring Dotty. I gave my donation as a memorial to Marty F. and feel your design is just fine.

 MY practice in donating memorials --church, Hospice,etc, is to mention honor of the caregiver, spouse, significant other or whomever.

I did not know how you could include Dotty on Marty's brick and apologize for the confusion.

However, she should be recognized and honored for her extraordinary care of Marty..Perhaps a single row of bricks next to the 40 bricks for Marty. I will gladly donate if it can happen. There is no question in my mind that Marty honored and appreciated Dotty over the time that I saw their photos and videos.

Otherwise I thank you for your idea and work and will leave the issue alone.

 

I think a few bricks for her is a splendid idea.

Ben, It is a great idea!  Very imaginative and a great tribute. 

I wondered how you were thinking of using 40 bricks.  I am only familiar with one brick per person or family like our little rural area war memorial where we bought one brick each to commemorate my dad's and uncle's service.  I made a poor engineer; I don't think outside the box.  Probably why they pushed me out with early retirement!  

Mark Boyce posted:

Ben, It is a great idea!  Very imaginative and a great tribute. 

I wondered how you were thinking of using 40 bricks.  I am only familiar with one brick per person or family like our little rural area war memorial where we bought one brick each to commemorate my dad's and uncle's service.  I made a poor engineer; I don't think outside the box.  Probably why they pushed me out with early retirement!  

Mark, I doubt the poor engineer bit. It's always about cost of manpower. Give me the oldies but goldies any day. Can't replace experience ever.

I sincerely hope that the design Ben has come up with can be done to the letter and we get an October York dedication. I may have never had been introduced or had a proper conversation with him(other then Hi Marty), but following his posts, and talking to some that were very close to him, you got to know him to a degree. I still have to find the one OGR article that I read a bit back he wrote, as I read the whole thing one night before heading to bed(this was before I heard about what he was going through). It's somewhere in the stack by the bed that I keep close at hand. I'll have to sort that out soon.

Even though the gofundme has already exceeded its goal, the extra donations will go towards an awesome museum.

Marty was a wonderful guy. I very much enjoyed our email conversations where he always had great ideas. Discussions in-person at shows were memorable because he was always so positive and nice. I remember how stoked he was for the VL Niagara.

He'll be missed dearly.

Update  I have been going back and forth with the Toy Train museum  It looks like they can not do the border of train tracks that I had in the original design  Also The brick layout is different than the drawing  I submitted another design to them last night  Lets see what happens  I have it below   I will keep you guys updated.  Again thanks to all that have donated

Bricks take2

FYI  The NJ HiRailers are going to name a bridge on our layout The Marty Fitzhenry Memorial bridge and we are going to add some sign on our police station to make it the Dedham Mass police dept.

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bluelinec4 posted:

Update  I have been going back and forth with the Toy Train museum  It looks like they can not do the border of train tracks that I had in the original design  Also The brick layout is different than the drawing  I submitted another design to them last night  Lets see what happens  I have it below   I will keep you guys updated.  Again thanks to all that have donated

Bricks take2

FYI  The NJ HiRailers are going to name a bridge on our layout The Marty Fitzhenry Memorial bridge and we are going to add some sign on our police station to make it the Dedham Mass police dept.

Ben;

First, thank you for all your work on this. And I look forward to seeing the dedicated bridge next time I get to visit.

Finally, can I make a suggestion??? The ring of seals looks rather busy - could they do one seal per brick going across the top and bottom??? And one very minor edit - since “And”, “A”, and “Of” capitalize the first letter, I think “by” should be the same.

Apples55 posted:
bluelinec4 posted:

Update  I have been going back and forth with the Toy Train museum  It looks like they can not do the border of train tracks that I had in the original design  Also The brick layout is different than the drawing  I submitted another design to them last night  Lets see what happens  I have it below   I will keep you guys updated.  Again thanks to all that have donated

Bricks take2

FYI  The NJ HiRailers are going to name a bridge on our layout The Marty Fitzhenry Memorial bridge and we are going to add some sign on our police station to make it the Dedham Mass police dept.

Ben;

First, thank you for all your work on this. And I look forward to seeing the dedicated bridge next time I get to visit.

Finally, can I make a suggestion??? The ring of seals looks rather busy - could they do one seal per brick going across the top and bottom??? And one very minor edit - since “And”, “A”, and “Of” capitalize the first letter, I think “by” should be the same.

Any Better?

Bricks take3

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bluelinec4 posted:
Apples55 posted:
bluelinec4 posted:

Update  I have been going back and forth with the Toy Train museum  It looks like they can not do the border of train tracks that I had in the original design  Also The brick layout is different than the drawing  I submitted another design to them last night  Lets see what happens  I have it below   I will keep you guys updated.  Again thanks to all that have donated

 

FYI  The NJ HiRailers are going to name a bridge on our layout The Marty Fitzhenry Memorial bridge and we are going to add some sign on our police station to make it the Dedham Mass police dept.

Ben;

First, thank you for all your work on this. And I look forward to seeing the dedicated bridge next time I get to visit.

Finally, can I make a suggestion??? The ring of seals looks rather busy - could they do one seal per brick going across the top and bottom??? And one very minor edit - since “And”, “A”, and “Of” capitalize the first letter, I think “by” should be the same.

Any Better?

Bricks take3

Ben;

Personally, I think that looks better. Now, please don’t hit me (or worse, ban me from ever visiting youz guyz ever again)... on the upper, middle, and lower tiers, I would center the seals on each brick. Of course, if you do that, you might want to eliminate the seals on either end of rows 2 and 4 since they would not line up with rows 1, 3, and 5.

NOT LionelLLC posted:

I see 38 bricks in the design but the go fund me page has funding for 52 bricks.

Stu

“This is Bens reply “                   Thank you everyone that contributed    I plan on calling the museum today  Since there is extra money in the Go Fund Me account a few here have suggestions for its use.  I started this specifically for Marty.  I dont want to take away from any of the other friends that have passed but this wasnt started for them.  All money will be given to the Toy Train Museum in Martys name whether its for the bricks or an extended donation. If anybody wants to start another collection for other memorials go right ahead.   If the Museum allows more bricks I will expand Marty's piece.  I just took a shot at a design but am not sure if the museum could do it this way.  So until I discuss it with them this is what I had in mind  If anybody has any suggestions I will entertain changes

Last edited by Chris Lonero
Chris Lonero posted:
NOT LionelLLC posted:

I see 38 bricks in the design but the go fund me page has funding for 52 bricks.

Stu

“This is Bens reply “                   Thank you everyone that contributed    I plan on calling the museum today  Since there is extra money in the Go Fund Me account a few here have suggestions for its use.  I started this specifically for Marty.  I dont want to take away from any of the other friends that have passed but this wasnt started for them.  All money will be given to the Toy Train Museum in Martys name whether its for the bricks or an extended donation. If anybody wants to start another collection for other memorials go right ahead.   If the Museum allows more bricks I will expand Marty's piece.  I just took a shot at a design but am not sure if the museum could do it this way.  So until I discuss it with them this is what I had in mind  If anybody has any suggestions I will entertain changes

Dang Chris, I (now) remember reading that when Ben posted.  I guess I had a brain freeze.  Thanks.

Stu

Dave NYC Hudson PRR K4 posted:

I'm still curious if we can get an October York dedication. Of course this will be figured out when everything is said and done, so I don't expect this anytime soon, maybe during summer we will know.

Nice idea Dave.  Like you said it will take time to get it done.  My Dad's brick at our little rural War Memorial took months, but they were doing a lot of bricks for others.

Mark Boyce posted:
Dave NYC Hudson PRR K4 posted:

I'm still curious if we can get an October York dedication. Of course this will be figured out when everything is said and done, so I don't expect this anytime soon, maybe during summer we will know.

Nice idea Dave.  Like you said it will take time to get it done.  My Dad's brick at our little rural War Memorial took months, but they were doing a lot of bricks for others.

I would suspect October might be pushing it, but maybe it could happen.  The brick order form used to say something to the effect of "if received by month x will be in place by month y", but the new wording just talks about being done within a fiscal year if received by a certain date.

And also, of course, nice job on this , Ben!

-Dave

From what was discussed with the girl from the museum Its 90% we can have it done by October  She is waiting to hear back from the company that does the bricks    I'm going to ask Dotty / Dottie / Dotey  if she will be coming to York in October   BTW when I watch that commercial for the KIA that parks itself all I think of is Marty and that Boston accent   Paaak the caaaa

Just wanted to update everybody that donated   This is the first time I have used GoFundMe and might be my last   It has been a nightmare trying to withdraw the funds but I believe after about 100 emails and conversations it is finally in the process  I have closed the account so it will not accept anymore donations.  The Toy Train Museum wont discuss the designs until they get a check   So hopefully as soon as it hits the club account our esteemed Treasurer Al will cut a check and send it on its way to Pennsylvania.  Still hoping the dedication ceremony in October will be doable.  I will continue to update everybody as we go.

Thank you thank you thank you to all that have donated to this

Ben

Moving along  The Museum sent me a suggested layout   The bricks are not staggered as we had thought before  They are straight and in line   The layout they sent was way too busy and Marty's name was lost in a bunch of graphics and too small 

This is what they sent back 

tca

 

 I modified theirs and came up with this   I sent it back to them and will wait to hear

Bricks take5

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Just wanted to update everybody. The museum has received our check in the amount of $5225.  I updated the design to include Marty’s TCA number. They have advised me that all lettering will be the same font and the same size as a requirement of the brick manufacturer. We should be on schedule to have this done well before October york. I am planning to request a time to schedule a small dedication ceremony.   I was thinking the Thursday before the Friday opening of york at about 3 pm. What are your thoughts 

Looks very nice Ben, he was a friend to many. Not surprised by the Go Fund Me requirements, they were burned a few times and have gotten stricter.

That the TCA wouldn't work with you until they have the cash in hand is disheartening. Not like we expected them to engrave the bricks ahead of time. Looking forward to images whenever it is finally completed.

bluelinec4 posted:

  The Toy Train Museum wont discuss the designs until they get a check   So hopefully as soon as it hits the club account our esteemed Treasurer Al will cut a check and send it on its way to Pennsylvania.  Still hoping the dedication ceremony in October will be doable.  I will continue to update everybody as we go.

Thank you thank you thank you to all that have donated to this

Ben

Last edited by BobbyD
Captain John posted:

Great job guys and well deserved for Marty who contributed and helped so many of us in our hobby.

I totally agree. Great job to Ben and whoever else helped. You guys really are TOP SHELF. Every time I have been to your club I have always been treated with kindness and hospitality. You guys are tops in my book.

I, too, think about Marty most days as I see Dottie on facebook each day. So if the bricks are being installed, are we planning a get together at the museum in early fall or going to wait to the spring time when April York is scheduled?

I realize folks here are spread out and the drive to there could be a lot for an hour or two having a memorial service which should be a celebration/rememberance for Marty.

I, too, think about Marty most days as I see Dottie on facebook each day. So if the bricks are being installed, are we planning a get together at the museum in early fall or going to wait to the spring time when April York is scheduled?

I realize folks here are spread out and the drive to there could be a lot for an hour or two having a memorial service which should be a celebration/rememberance for Marty.

I'd sure be willing to mask up and visit the museum on the day they are set if it can be determined.

- Greg

I visited the Toy Train Museum this weekend to see how Marty's Brick Tribute came   The museum did a great job  The Memorial Bricks are close to the entrance and really stand out among the other bricks   Thank you again everyone that donated   Marty will memorialized for every visitor to the museum.

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This picture is looking toward the main entrance  Sorry for the shadows but you can see a rectangle on the left side outside the left rail  That is Marty's

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Closer

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Last edited by bluelinec4

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