Saturday night, rail artist Bill Berkompas passed away, five weeks after a serious automobile accident in eastern Michigan.Bill was a longtime member of the Michigan State Trust for Railway Preservation and very involved in the restoration of Pere Marquette 1225, and well known for his artistic technical drawings of such locomotives as Pere Marquette 1225, GTW 6325, C&O 1601, Alaska Railroad 2, and C&O 614, to name but a few.Funeral arrangements are pending, but the expectation is that a service will be held on Wednesday, likely in Charlotte, Michigan.-Fritz Milhaupt

Fritz, that is sad news. What a talent. One of my favorite shirts is a Berkompas line drawing of 1225.

My wife and I just got back from the funeral home. Visitation is tomorrow from 2 - 4 and 7 -9 at the Pray Funeral Home in Charlotte. I'm going to miss Bill. Not only was he a great artist, but also a great person. We first met about 16 years ago when I first moved to Michigan, but it's only the last few years that I got to spend much time with him. He had started working for the Huckleberry RR this spring , to help get 464 back in service. His last day at the Huck he painted the numbers on the front number plate. His wife , Dottie, said he was so proud to do that. And I'm glad we have that, along with his fine drawings to remember him by.Marty Knox

Wow - Bill's drawing of #1225 hung in my room most of my teenage years, and now hangs in the bedroom of my five year old. Several of our fellow OC Volunteers have his drawing of #6325 as well. A neat guy --- last time I saw him was at our annual steam lunch at the Huck this summer. The man really knew how to capture a locomotive in all its glory!TJ Gaffneyhttp://www.railroadcatalog.com/berscalprin.html