My son Doug and "Engineer" Denson

I have always enjoyed railroading.  Well, almost always, since age three when my folks bought me a second hand electric train for my Christmas present.  I ran that thing in a loop on the living room floor by the hour.  During my military career I couldn’t do much with my interest, but it never went away.  I had been a member of the National Railroad Museum in Green Bay for several years and received their quarterly publication.  The copy that came out the month after I retired was asking for volunteers to work at the museum.  One of the positions requested was for engineers.  WOW, run a real train!!  I volunteered, passed the interview, completed the training and have been engineering for three years.  I operate four different engines, one of them was built in 1943, finally something older than me.  The museum has a large collection of railroad equipment and artifacts.  It is an entertaining and educational experience that cannot be replicated anywhere else in Wisconsin.  Just Google “National Railroad Museum, Green Bay, WI” and learn more about the museum, their operations and hours.

There are more railroad experiences I have enjoyed and will share some of them later.

Maj. Gen. Al Wilkening (left) watches as Brig. Gen. Kerry Denson, commander of the Wisconsin Army National Guard, shows his Vietnam battle scars to guardsmen in San Antonio. Denson, a Huey helicopter pilot who served two tours in Vietnam, is featured in “Wisconsin Vietnam War Stories.”

“Wisconsin Vietnam War Stories” will air in three one-hour segments May 24 to 26, the week after LZ Lambeau, a three-day event and welcome-home gathering at Lambeau Field in Green Bay.

To read more about this documentary, read the article by Meg Jones of the Journal Sentinel that was posted May 12, 2010 at www.JSOnline.com/news/Wisconsin