The late Jim Wrinn and I met while I was working on the Southern Railway Steam Program in the mid ‘70’s. I visited him at his TRAINS editor office and also at the narrow gauge convention in Hickory, NC, and the Southern Railway Historical Association in Spencer, NC. We talked about similarities in our background including love for the Graham County Railroad, steam locomotives, marriage history and cancer. After his passing I found this FaceBook post, dated August 10, 2021, 1:01 pm, and it fits so well a positive attitude that I feel helps, not necessarily that in itself can cure. It is a great story and apropos for a healthy attitude. It is only a guess on my part but do wonder if he devoted too much to his work versus taking care of himself even though he related how much he exercised.
It’s been six months since I was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and five months since I started chemo treatments. Last Friday was chemo treatment 14, and we’re on break until Sept. 10. The good news: I’m still here! I get to be with Cate! I can do things. I can work. I can travel. I’m making progress. It’s an uphill battle — this cancer is a stubborn, difficult and awful disease (too many others have been diagnosed and died in the time that I’ve been under treatment). The side effects are tough — but I am going to be one of the long-term survivors, which brings me to this note of thanks today.
It occurred to me recently while I was walking through the hospital to a treatment that I know now why my dad used to tell me stories when I was a kid about Korean War prisoners. Yes, you read that right. When we would be doing chores on Saturdays, my dad used to tell me stories about returning POWs. He was in the Army Reserves back in the 1950s and was assigned to study this. At the time, I didn’t understand what this meant to me. I thought they were just stories. But now I understand what he was trying to get across to me. He told me about the Army was concerned that too many U.S. soldiers didn’t survive prison. He told me those who didn’t make it were isolated, without hope, and died. He also told me how the story was different with one group that impressed the U.S. Army: Turkish POWs. He described how that on repatriation day, all of POWs from Turkey returned. Every one of them. He told me how they did it. They organized in prison into a regimented group. They kept busy. They had a leader who gave them a list of daily tasks. They found strands of fabric and used them make a replica of their country’s flag, which they proudly displayed when they were freed. They didn’t lose a single soldier in prison. They didn’t lose track of each other — they knew that someone on the other side of the wall or across the hall from them cared. They didn’t lose hope.
The lesson is clear now. When faced with great difficulty, get together a plan and work it, take care of yourself and those around you, live today and make plans for the day when you get your life back. Most of all, never, ever give up.
Well, Dad, you always told me that I always achieved whatever I set my mind to. I’ve set my mind to being a long-term survivor. I still have some joy to know in this world, and I still have some joy I need to share with others. So, I’ll be late getting home, just like when I was 16. You and mom and keep the back porch light on for me.
A photo of Jim’s favorite Shay engine that he saw in RAILROAD magazine was also the first railroad photo I have had published.
Jim was born in Franklin, NC, the north end of the Tallulah Falls Railway the same year that railroad shut down. With support of his father, he enjoyed associating with trains and growing into reporting for newspapers in North Carolina. He was a volunteer for four decades at the North Carolina Transportation Museum and helped found the Southern Railway Historical Association. In 1999 Jim was involved in getting Graham County Shay 1925 to Railfair in Sacramento, CA, where it beat another Shay running 18 mph! Railfair 1999 – Page 1 He authored or co-authored five books and used a lot of my photos of the Southern Steam Program in his book “STEAMS CAMELOT”. When I visited a railroad museum in Canberra, Australia, Jim’s practical and realistic view on railroad preservation was quoted. Finally, in October 2004, he got his dream job as the editor of TRAINS magazine which he held until his death. Jim passed away March 30, 2022, at age 61, after a courageous, 14-month long battle with pancreatic cancer.
Additional information can be found at: James Wrinn Obituary – Franklin, NC | Macon Funeral Home