For about six years, until 2016, Jeff Ambrose worked at the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden, Colorado, first as a volunteer and then as Restoration Manager responsible for the restoration and upkeep of all the museum’s rolling stock and its roundhouse. Over the years he was assisted by around 65 volunteers. They included his A-Team, the “Tuesday Group,” some 10 volunteers who came weekly to help Jeff with a variety of projects. In 2016, Jeff left the museum. For the Tuesday Group it was the end of an era, one they were all reluctant to leave behind.

Rick DeWitt

Eric Robison, Jeff Ambrose, Jim Curtis, and Rick DeWitt (from left to right) glue up the second lower chine block. In the background, under a blue tarp, is a Night Heron kayak, which Jeff was also building at the time.

“We really enjoyed working together,” Jeff says, “so I suggested we continue the relationship by having them come over to my shop in Littleton once a week to build stuff. For about a year, maybe more, they’d come over and work on small projects—furniture, toys for grandchildren, that sort of thing. But then we ran out of projects, and we needed something to do. It didn’t really matter what we built. The object was to get together, develop our skills, and enjoy being around each other.”

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