Re: Albion, ME

Don't let the numbers discourage you. Other than running trains, the Sumpter Valley has about half a dozen people to do 90% of the work. It has been this way from the beginning, although the names change from time to time. The important thing is to find what resources are available and go after them. Over the years we have received many donations of labor and equipment from local industries and individuals, as well as track materials and transportation from the big railroads. In addition we have used the National Guard, Naval Reserve, CETA Program, and inmate crews from a local corrections facility. These things are bigger than any 2 to 6 people can handle by themselves, you must have outside help. The best way is to sell the project as an historic preservation/restoration. People will donate to preserve history, but trying to promote the project as being good for the economy is a hard sell. In our experience, the businesses that donate the most are the ones that stand to gain the least. Some of them would not even allow us to publically credit them with the donation.
But above all, don't give up! There have been many times when it looked like we had reached the end of our string, but something always came up get us going again. When the time came to get the 19 & 20 out of Skagway we had no resources of our own, but the job was done in the required 30 days. And retrieving the tenders from Guatemala was a yarn worthy of a mini-series.
Hang in there!