Our 5 Year 2014 Appeal...

[ezdays]

It’s hard to top what Mikey just said. We do appreciate every member here as well as every one of our staff. Big Blue may not be totally unique in maintaining a family-friendly atmosphere, but we have to be at the top of the list in how our members conduct themselves. A lot of you either came along for the ride as we morphed into what we are today, while there are those that we lost along the way, and came back after seeing that we able to return to our original values. We have many new members as well, and we are thankful to you all, old and new, for being here.

I remember when I first got into the hobby and was jumped on for asking about DC because I didn’t want to go right into DCC. Then, on that same forum, I remember someone posting a picture of an engine that they spent hours decorating, and the first comment out was, “it would have been nice if you would have used the right shade of yellow.” hock: About that time, I almost decided that maybe MRR wasn’t for me, but then I found the-gauge. Good people from the get-go willing to help anyone and answering simple or complex questions without making the other member feel foolish for asking. Big Blue has been here for five years and I’ve yet to see anyone post a “go look it up on Google” reply, which happens so often other places. It may be warranted, but heck, we are all friends here and you don’t do that to a friend… It’s that kind of attitude that attracts good people to Big Blue.

As in past years, we’ve been blessed with members willing to support Big Blue, and as Mikey said, we can get along for a while without additional help, but it sure makes our jobs a lot easier when it’s time to pay the bills and we have people willing to share this burden. We are not asking anything from those that cannot help, we know that not everyone can; you are as welcome here as anyone else. We’re not asking much from those that want to help either; if you feel you can, no matter how little, just hit the “donate” button at the bottom of the page; everything and anything is appreciated.

We have an amazing group here, good people, great modelers, and we thank you for you past and continued support. Now, just so you know, we are willing to do whatever we need to do in order to keep Big Blue running, but we will never cross the line to get revenue from ads or sponsors. That will never happen, regardless.

Thank you one and all, just for being here.