Thursday, October 02, 2008

Save the Delta Queen Video, Please Participate

From: KyleKWyatt@gmail.com

Save the Delta Queen Video, Please Participate

The Delta Queen is certainly worthy of saving.

Kyle K. Wyatt
California State Railroad Museum

1 Comments:

Blogger CPRR Discussion Group said...

From: "Kevin Bunker" mikadobear45@yahoo.com

I did my part just now:

Dear Rep. Blumenauer:

Blocked in Congress right now is a petition for salvation of the very historic working steam sternwheel riverboat "Delta Queen." I trust you know of this vessel already, and I hope you know of the pending request to renew her periodic Congressionally-approved Safety at Sea Act waiver.

This time the matter is more urgent than it has been in years past. "Delta Queen," the last true historic monarch of the Western Rivers, is now facing retirement because of two failed owners and the sour economy.

Why should you or I, as Oregonians, care about this? I can attest, having been born and raised in Sacramento – her original home from the 1920s to the eve of WWII – that she is a treasure that cannot be duplicated. I sailed on her a few autumns ago, a dream I had held since childhood, for I am too young to have known "Delta Queen" in her California career. But in 10 days and 9 nights aboard her, I succumbed completely to her magical power to act not just a means of relaxed pleasure travel but as a perfect Time Machine. Aboard a steaming, river-wandering "Delta Queen" the last 10 generations past merge into one, and time resumes much the feel and appearance it did 100 years ago. America is discoverable in a unique way aboard this grand old riverboat when she is freely underway.

And why should you care? Sure, we Oregonians have the sternwheel freight tug "Portland" preserved and steamable, but "Portland" doesn't spend much time these days carrying passengers and never did. She is a museum boat, she is a tug, pure and simple. While valuable locally "Portland" is not the Delta Queen's" equal and never will be. The United States doesn't much need another museum boat, at least not "Delta Queen" as a moored museum.

Please, sir, somehow during this rush to control and end this national economic madness that is presently consuming everyone's attention, please – find some way to weigh in and help push through passage of the Save-the-Delta Queen legislation!

Thank you very much for your ardent attention to this urgent matter.

—Kevin V. Bunker

10/02/2008 12:43 PM  

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