We received news today that former club member Gene Schilling has passed on to “the big train in the sky” while in Sloan’s Lake Rehab hospital this past Sunday, November 28th.

An avid modeler and collector of trains from both the Santa Fe and Colorado & Southern Gene has been fixture in the hobby around the Denver area for years.  You could always find him at any local railroad event or train show.  Gene joining the club in 2001 and was a regular member until 2018 when he retired from Celedon Trucking.

Recently in late-October Gene had a bad fall and ended up in the hospital for a couple of days. While there it was discovered he had several inoperable tumors throughout his body. His family had him transferred to a rehab hospital where he was being cared for at the time of his passing.

Gene did not want a funeral service and was cremated yesterday. His remains will be placed at Resthaven cemetery in Ft. Collins, next to his dad. Gene was 71 when he passed and is survived by his sister and brother-in-law in Ft. Collins. Gene had briefly worked for the Great Western Railway as a young man and served in the USMC in Vietnam.  The family is working with the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs to get a USMC grave marker.

RIP “Big Fella”