Public Invited to Model Railroad Event in Dedham Oct. 15th

DEDHAM, MA - The National Model Railroad Association’s HUB Division has announced that it will be coming to Dedham’s Mother Brook Arts & Community Center at 123 High Street for the group's popular RailFun meetings to which the public is enthusiastically invited to attend at no charge.

Established over 60 years ago, Boston’s HUB Division was launched “to promote and support the model railroading hobby.” As part of that mission, on Friday October 15th at 8pm, the HUB Division will host its monthly meeting at the Mother Brooks Arts and Community Center. The free event will feature Stephen Brayton, the Vice President of the Dedham Historical Society, who will present a program about the history of Dedham’s railways. Brayton has served on the Board of the Dedham Historical Society & Museum for more than 20 years, including two terms as President. Professionally, Steve was a financial reporter at the Boston Herald and then a communications executive with Gillette before starting his own consultancy. He has written numerous articles for the historical society newsletter, and presented a webinar earlier this year on the Dedham Branch railroad. A life-long rail fan, Steve has contributed many photos to websites such Fallen Flags and New England Rail.

After the feature presentation, Master Model Railroader Mike Tylick, who earned his BFA from Rhode Island School of Design and taught Fine Arts in Worcester Public Schools for over thirty years, will present tips and tricks on building award-winning train layouts. He will also reveal the secrets of painting “forced perspective” model train backdrops, which have been featured at the HUB Division's annual holiday exhibits at the Museum of Science.

Previously, the 400-member group hosted its meetings at the Cambridge School in Weston, but due to the pandemic concerns, the school is no longer accommodating outside school facility rentals. Andy Reynolds, part of the HUB Division leadership team notes, “We’re hoping the Mother Brook Arts and Community Center in Dedham will be our permanent home to bring back some consistency back into our meetings. Our group is encouraging everyone to bring along friends, as well as anyone interested in trains and what we do as train hobbyists.””

As part of the evening’s event The Blue Bunny Bookstore will be raffling off a signed copy of New York Times #1 best-selling author/illustrator Peter H. Reynolds’ new PEACE TRAIN book, which he illustrated, and was written by Yusuf Cat Stevens.

Prior to the 8pm meeting, the group will enjoy drinks and dinner at Horse Thieves Tavern at 585 High Street, Dedham, MA. Horse Thieves Tavern co-owner and restaurateur Chris Lutes is thrilled to welcome the group, “Events like the HUB Division bring people from all across New England to Dedham, which is critical for supporting our local economy, especially as we emerge from the challenges of the pandemic.”

For more information about the HUB Division and how to join: www.hubdiv.org. For those interested in joining the NMRA and the HUB Division for the first time, the charge is only $50 for the first year of full NMRA membership, which includes a subscription to the NMRA Magazine.