At The Heritage of Green Hills, there’s a special room where hundreds of little people cheer on the racers at the Reading Fairgrounds, tiny sightseers visit the Reading Pagoda and the William Penn Memorial Fire Tower, and mini shoppers browse at Pomeroy’s Department — all while cheery trains whiz by.
It’s really something to see, and everyone lucky enough to visit the senior living community’s model train room seems to say the exact same thing upon entering: “Wow!”
The expansive — and ever-evolving — display is a true labor of love for the residents who have contributed their personal train collections and set up engaging tableaus in the display over the years.
“We gather together regularly to talk trains, make repairs, and maintain and clean the tracks and wheels,” says Heritage Model Train Club member Joe Lavanga. “The cleaning is time-consuming, but we love it.”
The club also counts Ray Lascomb, Justin Haux, Carol Lauer, Barry Gross, John Gehris, Joe Lavanga, Bob Walters, and Walt Woessner among its members, with Rodney A. Focht serving as the club’s president.
In addition to the custom-built miniature versions of local landmarks, other charming vignettes include a winter scene with skiers and skaters, a boy scout troop’s camping trip, commuters waiting patiently at the train station, a local farm, and an airport. Other vehicles, including cars, bicycles, motorcycles, and a camper van, are set throughout the display. Planes hang on wires from the ceiling amid fluffy cotton-stuffing clouds.
The train room was constructed entirely by Heritage residents beginning in 2009. Many of the trains on display originally belonged to Focht, who requested he be given a room for his model trains when he moved to The Heritage in 2009.
“Originally, they were planning to use this space as a quilting room,” says Focht. “But they moved that to a place with natural light and let me work in here.” He personally constructed the large central platform and the shelves that encircle the room.
Of course, other club members add their own personal touches. Lauer uses her considerable artistic skill to paint the Reading landmarks that make the display truly unique. With an incredible eye for detail, she individually painted each stone by hand in the William Penn Memorial Fire Tower to ensure a realistic look.
Lavanga has contributed one of the room’s most recent updates, a G Gauge Engine that drives a train that rolls along a wall-mounted track above visitors’ heads. “And that’s my old office, there,” he says, pointing to a State Farm Insurance storefront in the display.
Since each member has donated his or her trains, several different sizes of trains are featured, with G, O, S, N, and even teeny Z scale models incorporated in the large collection. In addition to the main display, there’s a side room dedicated to an impressive HO scale setup, as well.
“We’re a resident-focused community,” says Doug Walther, the community’s Executive Director. “When they have special requests or want us to try something new, we try to accommodate them whenever we can. This wonderful Train Room is a perfect example of how our residents make our community even more special.”
“We have several other types of clubs, groups, and activities for people will all sorts of different interests,” says Cheryl Anderson, the Well By Design Director. “Book clubs, games, dancing, crafting, exercise, and even cheerleading. And new things start all the time!”
During the holidays, members of the public are invited to see the train room for themselves at two festive open houses on Saturday, December 14, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Saturday, December 21, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Elves will serve cocoa and holiday treats at the family-friendly event.
“Hundreds of visitors come through here every year during the open houses,” explains Focht. “It’s a special event.”
To learn more about The Heritage of Green Hills, visit HeritageOfGreenHills.com.
To learn more about the Train Room Open Houses, please visit: https://heritageofgreenhills.com/join-us/.