My friend and mentor, Charles Robert "Chuck" Yungkurth passed away on May 7, 2016, in Louisville, Colorado. Being friends with Chuck was among the greatest honors of my life.

Born in 1929 in Scranton, PA to Harry S. and Edna M. Yungkurth, he received a mechanical engineering degree from Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA. He was a mechanical engineer for IBM Federal Systems Division, Owego, NY, from 1953 to 1990. Among other government projects, he worked on state of the art computers for NASA's Space Shuttle program. He served in the US Army from 1955 to 1957, as a project engineer in the US Army Engineer Test Unit, US Army Engineer Center, Ft. Belvoir, VA.

Chuck was married to Mary C. Burriss in 1956, in Mt. Pleasant, OH. They lived in Binghamton and Endicott NY from 1957 until 1999, when they moved to Boulder, CO. Mary passed away in 2012. They are survived by four children: Charles Burriss Yungkurth, Madison, AL; Karen Yungkurth Gerhardt, Edwards, CO; Kristin Edna Raphael, Brooklyn, NY; Kurt Scott Yungkurth, Marana, AZ. They have six grandchildren.

Chuck was a lifelong railroad enthusiast and historian. Combining his photographic skills with his love of trains, he built an archive of some 10,000 images, which he made available to the railroad community. He had deep and unique knowledge of northeastern railroads such as the Erie Lackawanna, and wrote 6 highly sought-after books on railroads, published by Morning Sun Books . He volunteered for over 15 years as a researcher in the library at the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden, CO. He was an avid participant in model railroading. An accomplished draftsman, Chuck pioneered the development of accurate mechanical drawings of railroad equipment, used by historians, model manufacturers, model builders, and publishers. He was a consultant to manufacturers and developed railroad models familiar to collectors all over the world. He had many articles published in Model Railroader Magazine from the 1960s until about 2005. According to Harold Miller, editor, he will be forever remembered as the designer of the Gumstump & Snowshoe a small portable layout that's been built by many model railroaders over the years.

My friend, James Russell "Jim" Guthrie, passed away on December 20, 2016 in Scranton, Pa. A walking encylopedia of the anthracite industry, Jim was a trusted mentor in historical research methodology and resources. His advise and suggestions, insightful critiques, and most of all his sharp wit and humor will be greatly missed.

Jim was raised in Smithtown, New York, graduated from the George Washington University, and had careers in radio and print journalism before recently retiring from the garment industry in IT and Electronic Data Interchange services. His passions included railways, especially anthracite railroads. He belonged to the Long Island Sunrise Trail Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society, the New Jersey Midland Railway Historical Society , and the New York Chapter of the Railway and Locomotive Historical Society , as well as being active in the Lackawanna Historical Society and the Anthracite Heritage Museum.

Jim is survived by his sisters, Patrica Guthrie, of Park Forest, Ill.; the Reverend Suzanne Guthrie, of Citrus Heights, Calif.; and his partner, Albert Guthrie of Scranton Pa.

Jim always used the closing "cheers" in his e-mails.

Cheers to you Jim! Now you know all the answers.