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 Post subject: ‘You need the knowledge and young people, too’
PostPosted: Mon May 02, 2022 12:18 am 

Joined: Sun Aug 22, 2004 1:51 pm
Posts: 11481
Location: Somewhere east of Prescott, AZ along the old Santa Fe "Prescott & Eastern"
I shouldn't have to say why I posted this.

https://www.sundaypost.com/fp/strathspey-railway/

Quote:
‘You need the knowledge and young people, too’: Strathspey Railway looks to the future to help preserve the past

Operators of one of Scotland’s most popular heritage railways are hoping to get more young people involved as they look to the future to help preserve the past.

The Strathspey Railway, which runs steam locomotives between Aviemore, Boat of Garten and Broomhill, hopes to keep the 10-mile line in safe hands for generations to come by offering apprenticeships to budding engineers.

At the Aviemore Engine Shed, apprentices such as Seonagh MacDonald, 19, and Matthew Murphie, 18, have taken their first steps into the world of mechanics alongside engineers who have worked on the railway for decades.

From maintenance to signalling and driving the locomotives, skills are being passed down.

Graham Sutherland from Strathspey Railway said: “We have to attract more young people to survive because, if you think of it as a seesaw, there’s more at one end than there are at the other.

“The problem is addressing the balance, because you need the knowledge, but you need the young people coming through as well.”

The Aviemore Engine Shed, built in 1898 as part of the Highland Railway, is the last building of its kind in Scotland fulfilling its original purpose.

Seonagh MacDonald has been fascinated by the steam railway that has been central to her hometown of Aviemore since long before she was born.

The 19-year-old, an engineering apprentice, pursued a career in mechanics fuelled by a curiosity about how everything worked.

“I originally wanted to go into the RAF as an engineer,” she said. “I thought it would be a good idea to learn a bit more so I volunteered at the railway and I ended up getting an apprenticeship and working here, it’s a lot more fun.

“As a wee kid you think it’s really cool and then you look into it and find out how interesting the engineering side of it all is.

“It was great finding out how the engines are put together, how things work and how to fix them or put them back together.

“All the guys I work with are brilliant. They explain everything in a way you understand and you can have a few laughs with them along the way.”


Much more at the link.


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