The Ocean County Society Of Model Railroaders Winter Open House Is Coming

The Ocean County Society of Model Railroaders, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, at 502 Country Club Road, Pine Park, Lakewood, N.J., is holding its Winter Open House, Saturday, December 14 from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.; and Sunday, December 15, Noon to 5:00 p.m. The Model Railroaders are located in the basement of the Lakewood Historical Museum also known as the Sheldon Wolpin Historical Museum. A chair lift that goes to and from the basement is available. Admission is free but donations are always gladly accepted.

According to their website, The Ocean County Society of Model Railroaders club in Lakewood, New Jersey serving the Monmouth/Ocean Counties on the Jackson/Howell borders of Lakewood has moved from All Saints Episcopal Church in Lakewood where we have been located there since 1992. The club initially was formed in 1987 at an old gas station on Route 88 in Lakewood as an HO club.

It became a dual gauge, HO, and O club in 1992. We vacated the church basement completely on September 24, 2016, and are now located inside Pine Park sharing the building with the Lakewood Historical Museum in Kuser Hall next to Lakewood Country Club and Maggie's restaurant off of West County Line Road on the Lakewood/Jackson/Howell border.

A little history behind why we made the move. Since we were located in the basement of a church that has been around for close to 100 years, we were having issues with the pastor aka our landlord, so it was time to look elsewhere for another location. We were able to secure a new location at an old boys' school called "The Newman School" built-in 1927 in the basement of Kuser Hall. It is 1 of 5 buildings that was left untouched by Lakewood township which was the science and physics building.  It is built like a fortress with poured concrete walls and bricked ceilings.

The move did come with costs involved to our club. We had to fully renovate the basement of a school built in the 1920's that ceased operation in the 1960's. No one has used the basement in many years. It was a task that started in April 2014 for us with the result that we have 2 operating layouts there. One room has the HO layout which is modeling the NY/LB RR from the 50's and the other room has the S and O gauge layout.

Visitors to the Open House will see both modern and traditional trains running continuously on two large operating layouts. Ted Bertiger, president of The Ocean County Society of Model Railroaders, said, “We will have trains running for all ages. Come see our model train club in action!”

            For more information, contact Ted Bertiger, at 732-363-7799 or at captnkraft@aol.com. Also, visit ocsmr.com.

Wifey was out of town, so me and the kids headed to the new Sofia's Taqueria in Silverton, on Sunday. Check out the photos of our dishes.

According to Sofia's website, Sofia's Taqueria and Tequila Bar started in Staten Island and has now moved to New Jersey with the opening of the new location in Toms River! Lucky for me, it's right in my neighborhood of Silverton! Sofia's specializes in tacos and original as well as traditional Mexican dishes. Plus they are riding the wave of Tequila's popularity right now in the craft cocktail market. Sofia's is also a tequila bar, boasting 50 tequilas to choose from!

I knew this adventure would be an exciting one for myself and both of my kids. My almost 17-year-old son Donovan is a burrito fiend. He loves a good double steak jobber. My 23-year-old daughter Jynell is a tacohaulic. All kinds and styles. She also likes a good margarita. So with these two Mexican maniacs by my side, we went wolfing. We ordered a lot and I hope you enjoy all the photos of our Sofia's feast!