I don't remember exactly when i met Joe, it was probably in the early 1990s, but it was definitely centered around model trains. I joined the European Train Enthusiasts and met a lot of other model train hobbyists through that connection.

Around the time I joined ETE, several model railroaders at my company decided to form a module group. We made HO scale modules based on standards developed by TransWorldTrains. Our company, Tandem Computers, allowed employee clubs to use company facilities to support club activities. In the beginning, we set up the modules after work. Soon we were able to come in on weekends and use conference rooms to setup and run trains. Ultimately, the company allowed us to store the modules in a building in a storage area. We could then easily move the modules from storage into a conference room, play trains all day, then put the modules away in storage when we were done.

Eventually, the group was well-known enough that when the company put on a Christmas party of the employees' kids, we were invited to bring the modules and run trains as part of the festivities. Even when Compaq Computer bought Tandem, they still allowed us to keep the modules onsite. We were able to use the modules for 18 years! Compaq merged with Hewlett Packard, and we still kept going a few more years. Eventually the employees in the club left and others were laid off, so it came to a conclusion.

Since Joe was an ETE member outside of this Tandem connection, I met him and then invited him to come play trains when we were setup. This began a decades long friendship. We all know Joe was interested in a lot of things, so that made it fun to discuss all manner of topics, and his knowledge of trains around the world was impressive.

Eventually Joe asked me to be the executor for his estate. He had some friends who were local to the San Francisco Bay Area, but many others had moved away. I guess in the last few years of his life, Joe felt that Paul Ingraham and I were trustworthy enough to handle his affairs.

I've included two pictures of me. You may notice that I'm in some of the group pictures in the Joe_trains folder. The acronym TMRC is for Tandem Model Railroad Club, and is used in some of the picture titles. You can see a few shots of the modules when set up at Tandem.

There are some other train modules in these train photos. Joe and I were part of a narrow gauge module group so we could run our Swiss HO scale meter gauge trains.

I hope you enjoy these photos, most of them were found among his belongings, and it was fun to find pictures of him as a kid, especially the one where he's driving his trains around the room. I found those trains among his possessions in storage.

Regards,
David Baird