Been reading the accolades, which to me seem an understatement. I look at Al Westerfield as the Les Paul of freight car modeling. He as a chemist created the field and the market, and he's done it for so long that most modelers who came after thought it's always been there. And he's been so good at it, and so focused -- tiny and careful detailing and thorough prototype research, often offering every version. And how about the photo and data collections on disc that he makes available, and his customer service and dedication to quality at a high volume. What other resin kitmaker could keep up with Walthers Catalog orders? He built a fine business and inspired others to do the same. There was learning along the way -- anyone shatter an early resin kit? The crash of Bob Mohowski's Erie Fowler boxcar still echos through the halls of the Carstens Publications hilltop office outside of Newton, NJ. It's hard to imagine where critical modeling would be had Al not been involv
ed -- I'm thinking it all would be tinplate.

While it is hoped that someone continues Al's business, I can't imagine anyone going forward doing such a complete and consistent job. Al has often talked about his dream of modeling the IRT, and he told me a long time ago that once you're model railroading for a living you'll never model railroad for pleasure. I'm very glad that these notes of appreciation are not for his funeral, that he gets to hear and read our thoughts. And I'm glad that he'll finally get to built a model railroad for pleasure.

Happy Retirement Al and Patricia. Your lives have positively touched more people than you'll ever know.

Thanks are not enough ....Mike Del Vecchio