Appointed Officers

I have been an owner of private railcars since 1985, when he purchased Silver Lariat from Amtrak along with his partner. Their company, California Zephyr Railcar Charters was founded in 1989 to operate Silver Lariat on charters and tours.

In 1992 the Southern Pacific Railroad chartered Silver Lariat for a customer hospitality event in San Diego. That began a long-lasting relationship where Silver Lariat was used for numerous functions carrying top executives and valued customers all over both the SP and later UP systems.

CZRC acquired its second car, Silver Rapids, in 2000, and has operated its third car, Silver Solarium, under lease since 2007. In 2012 we acquired our fourth car, Silver Peak.

Our cars operate well over 50,000 miles annually, sometimes singly, but often in pairs or trios, almost always on Amtrak trains. In 2011 Burt worked with a music promoter to assemble and operate the “Railroad Revival Tour” special train of 14 cars, which took three bands on a seven-day tour from Oakland to New Orleans, with stops for six concerts. The tour was documented in the music video “Big Easy Express”, which won a Grammy Award in 2013.

California Zephyr Railcar Charters joined RPCA in 1999, and Burt has attended every annual Conference since then.

Along with our recently retired Membership Chairs Courtney and Elaine Shenkle, Burt converted and modernized the RPCA membership database, and as part of his duties as Vice President oversees the mailing of membership renewal invoices.

Will started his involvement in passenger excursion trains with the Cincinnati Railway Company. In partnership with the nonprofit organization Cincinnati Scenic Railway, CRC operates the 5-mile Lebanon Mason Monroe Railroad in Lebanon, OH and runs other rare-mileage excursions throughout the state under the Ohio Rail Experience branding. Additionally, the organization provides train crews for the Cincinnati Dinner Train.

Originally hired in 2014 as a part-time ticket agent and car host, Will later earned his conductor card and was promoted to position of general manager in 2016. Working under CRC president of operations Ray Kammer, Will lead several efforts that between 2016 and 2018 more than doubled ridership, nearly tripled revenues, and dramatically improved customer reviews.

After leaving CRC in early 2019, Will worked as a manager for the HAP Alaskan Rail Division. HAP is the joint venture managing Alaskan land tour assets for Princess Cruise Line and Holland America Line. HAP transports cruise ship guests over the Alaska Railroad from the ports of Anchorage, Whittier, and Seward to Denali National Park. Trains operate using a fleet of 20 luxury Colorado Railcar Ultra-domes. Unfortunately, the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic and years-long disruption to the cruise industry would cut this career path short. Will would go on to find work as a conductor first with Genesee & Wyoming and later the Alaska Railroad Corporation.

Will continues to work as a seasonal conductor on the Alaska Railroad from April to September in both freight and passenger service. During the off-season, Will works for various railroads and preservation groups. 

Will has been a member of RPCA since 2017 and was elected to represent the FNG committee in 2022. Outside of the rail yard, Will can usually be found traveling, hiking, and camping. 

Bio coming soon....

See below - Corporate Secretary

Borden is co-owner of the Dearing, a 1925 heavyweight office car. After extensive renovation, she hit the rails in 2012. Since then, the Dearing has traveled across the country and visited 44 states. She is now located on the SAM shortline in SW, Georgia. I spent four years as Executive Director of the American Association of Private Railroad Car Owners. I spent more than 20 years as a broadcast journalist, most of it as a news director at television stations in Columbus, Georgia. During my career, I received an Emmy and an Associated Press President’s Award for lifetime achievement. After my career in broadcasting, I opened my own public relations and freelance writing/video production firm. I have served numerous regional and national clients and have written for newspapers and magazines for more than 15 years. I am a graduate of the University of Alabama and a resident Columbus, Georgia, for almost 50 years.

Ray Kammer Jr. Ray was born and raised in Hammond, Indiana and part of family full of railroad history. Ray started to gain experience at a young age in 1989 alongside a family operated tourist operation based out of Monterey, IN. Then in 1997, he worked alongside his father operating excursion trains throughout the state of Michigan. These events covered everything from Dinner Trains to all day Steam Trips. Ray’s official railroad career started in 2007 when he started working for the Cincinnati Railway Company. This experience proved valuable in dealing everything from Amtrak certified private cars to hosting Day Out With Thomas events. In 2012, Ray started working for the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad, an operation that maintains 25 passenger cars, 7 locomotives, and hauls 200,000 passengers annually. His current position is Director of Railroad Operations and Planning. In past years, Ray has been involved with several other organizations, including the Nickel Plate Railroad Historical & Technical Society and the Ohio Rail Tourism Association. In 2014 he hosted the annual NKPH&TS Convention and was also on the planning committee for TrainExpo in Owosso, MI. Ray currently resides in Akron, OH and enjoys spending his free time away from work by traveling, playing music, and enjoying everything about Chicago sports.

Bio coming soon....

Mr. Wullich is a native of Batavia, NY and is a Chartered Global Management Accountant (CGMA) and a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in New York and Virginia. An Eagle Scout and graduate of St. Bonaventure University, he has owned over 26 pieces of historic rail equipment throughout his preservation efforts, including the former California Zephyr dome-observation car “Silver Solarium” until recently sold.

Like many people, Roy’s interests with trains began with a Lionel train set around the Christmas tree. Mr. Wullich started working with the Western New York Railway Historical Society in Buffalo, NY with railcar preservation and excursion operations in 1982. Roy has continued working with various excursion, charter and special trains; historical preservation projects; as well as various roles in both museum and operations management. He has also been a contractor to several Class One railroads including eight years with Canadian Pacific’s 2816 steam program and Holiday Train. Roy is a member and has served, and continues to serve, as an Officer of and on the Boards of several non-profit organizations, private Foundations and railroad preservation organizations.

Mr. Wullich has also held various senior management positions at several international companies including Intel, KPMG and Price Waterhouse. A member of the Railroad Passenger Car Alliance since 1988, Mr. Wullich was President of the Railway Passenger Car Alliance (RPCA) from January 2008-January 2012 and continues to serve as an active RPCA Board Member for over 25 years. During his tenure as President significantly increased the visibility of the Organization at the national level within the rail industry and has added several Class One railroads and key suppliers to the membership through his personal and professional relationships.

Additionally, Mr. Wullich serves both as Corporate Secretary and as a Board Member of the Tom E. Dailey Foundation. The Foundation, awards grants in several eligible categories including rail preservation. Since its creation in 2013, the Foundation has awarded over $925,000 in grants.

Mr. Wullich resides in Quinton, VA and is a CPA with Virginia based ProSport CPA, a boutique accounting firm specializing in personal tax and financial matters for Professional Athletes and Entertainers worldwide.

Bio coming soon....

Bio coming soon....