Jim Wrinn,
Editor
Jim Wrinn has been editor of Trains since Oct. 27, 2004. A native of Franklin, N.C., he graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a degree in journalism and political science. He worked at newspapers in Durham, Gastonia, and Fayetteville before joining The Charlotte Observer in 1986. He was a staff writer and editor, and worked for every section of the newspaper he could -- whether it be general news, business, religion, sports, and even the humor column.
Jim grew up watching the Southern Railway in his father's hometown, Westminster, S.C., and in Asheville, N.C., and riding the nearby Shay-powered Graham County Railroad at Robbinsville. He began reading Trains at age 6 in 1967 and had a subscription the following spring. The gift of a 35mm camera in 1977 started him taking black and white negatives and color slides. He has been an editor or writer at various times for "Rails South," a regional publication; Norfolk Southern's "Focus" magazine; the Piedmont Carolinas Chapter, National Railway Historical Society's "Flyer" newsletter; Southern Railway Historical Association's "Green Light" and later "Ties;" and N.C. Transportation Museum's "Shop Talk." Solely or in collaboration, he has written books about the Aberdeen & Rockfish short line, "The Road of Personal Service," 1992; "Spencer Shops, 1896-1996," 1996; "Pictorial History of North American Railroading," also 1996; and the Southern Railway and later Norfolk Southern steam program in "Steam's Camelot," 2001. He is preparing a book on the Graham County now.
Jim is a lifelong steam fan, and he is a qualified locomotive engineer at the N.C. Transportation Museum in Spencer. When not enjoying railroading, he enjoys hiking or bicycling, music, visiting National Parks, and sampling the vintage from wineries.
Diane M. Bacha,
Publisher
Diane M. Bacha grew up in Central New Jersey communities bordered by the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western’s Gladstone Branch and the Central Railroad of New Jersey’s main line. Her publications career began in a small-town newspaper bureau in Waverly, N.Y., just across the state line from the old Lehigh Valley yard and shops in Sayre, Pa. – an area full of old railroaders with memories.
She went on to work for more than 25 years as an editor and media executive for newspapers in New York State and Wisconsin, including 14 years at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Most recently, Diane was marketing and communications director for Public Allies, a national nonprofit youth leadership organization.
She has a degree in English Literature from the University of Delaware, is a 2003 USC Annenberg/Getty Arts Journalism Fellow, and serves as a founding board member of the Society for Features Journalism Foundation. While Amtrak’s
Hiawatha between Milwaukee and Chicago is a more routine choice for her these days, she relishes a ride on the Montclair-Boonton Line when family visits bring her back east.
Tom Danneman,
Art Director
Art Director Tom Danneman rejoined the Trains staff in January 2000. Tom was the assistant art director for Trains from January 1998 through August 1999 before leaving to be art director for Model Railroader.
Tom is responsible for the look of Trains. This includes designing the cover and feature articles, working with the editors to find the best way to present information, and giving direction to the illustrators as they produce those colorful and complex maps and other illustrations. In addition to Trains and Model Railroader, Tom also serves as art director for Classic Trains.
Tom enjoys photography, hiking, biking, basketball and volleyball. He especially enjoys spending his free time in Montana photographing his two favorite railroads, Burlington Northern Santa Fe (and predecessor Burlington Northern) and Montana Rail Link. He lives in Sussex with his wife, Christy, and daughter, Grace, not too far from the UP Adams sub and CN Waukesha sub crossing.
Kathi Kube,
Managing Editor
Kathi Kube, our managing editor, came to TRAINS in 2002 from
Progressive Railroading, where she was assistant editor for three and a half years.
Kathi graduated with honors from Mount Mary College in Milwaukee in 1999 and has spent her entire journalistic career talking with and writing about railroaders and their industry. Although science was never her strong suit, she’s developed a keen interest in railroad engineering and technology. She also volunteers in the diesel department at Illinois Railway Museum in Union, Ill. She’s currently a student brakeman there and plans to eventually work her way up to being a locomotive engineer.
Kathi also enjoys photography, hiking, biking, weightlifting, doing cardio exercise, and finding new vegan recipes to try. Now empty-nesters, she and her musician husband, Jim, live in Menomonee Falls, Wis.
Matt Van Hattem,
Senior Editor
Matt Van Hattem joined the Trains staff in January 2002, after spending a year at Kalmbach editing news and feature content on the Trains.com web site.
Born in Jersey City, N.J., Matt's early memories of railroads include riding PATH trains to Newark and Manhattan, and watching freight cars roll down the hump at Penn Central's yard in Selkirk, N.Y., a few miles from his childhood home.
Matt graduated from Franklin & Marshall College and went to work for PR Newswire, while learning to navigate the labyrinthine New York City subway system. He spent eight years with publisher John Wiley & Sons, editing college and professional books in the areas of travel and tourism, hotel and restaurant management, and building construction.
A resident of Oconomowoc, Matt enjoys travel, photography, and watching reruns of The Sopranos, noting that several of the show's signature mob hits have occurred in spots where he once stood to photograph Conrail freights.
Angela Pusztai-Pasternak,
Associate Editor
Angela Pusztai-Pasternak joined the TRAINS staff in January 2003 after a year and a half working in Kalmbach's Ad Services department on Trains, Classic Trains, and FineScale Modeler. She's worked as editorial assistant, editorial associate, and assistant editor. Since May 2012, she's served as associate editor. Angela edits feature stories, "In My Own Words," "Trackside," "Products," and columnists Don Phillips and Fred W. Frailey. She prepares the TRAINS e-newsletter stories, edits and posts online content, and manages TRAINS' social media. In 2010 and 2011, she edited Trains4Kids, special issues geared toward children about railroads, model railroads, and toy trains.
Before joining Kalmbach, Angela received her Bachelor of Arts in January 2001 from Lewis University in Romeoville, Ill., majoring in art and journalism. While a student, she worked as a graphics and publications designer for the university's marketing and communications department. She also wrote feature articles for the university's magazine and newspaper.
Angela enjoys spotting trains in popular culture, reading, going to concerts, Netflix, cooking, and good humor. Though a Wisconsin native, she has also lived in Jackson, Mich., near the former New York Central Air Line, and Joliet, Ill., with the ex-Elgin, Joliet & Eastern in her backyard. She lives in Oconomowoc (near the Canadian Pacific Railway) with her husband, Joe; daughter, Luella; son, Elliot; and their two cats, Lady Pixie Dust and Sir Stanley.
Brian Schmidt,
Assistant Editor
Brian Schmidt joined the Trains staff as assistant editor in June 2012, after graduating from Lourdes University with a degree in English literature. He handles the daily "News Wire" on TrainsMag.com and the magazine's main news section.
Brian became a railfan early in life with an HO scale train set. He grew up with the Alcos of Indiana Hi-Rail in northwest Ohio and later grew to prefer the main line action of CSX, which is sorely missed in Wisconsin. Today he models the Milwaukee Road in N scale.
He resides in Waukesha, just a few blocks from the Canadian National main line. When not writing about trains at work, Brian enjoys train-watching, photography, cooking, amateur radio, studying Japanese culture, reading classic literature, and cheering on the Green Bay Packers, which he has been a fan of long before moving to Wisconsin.
Scott Krall,
Senior Graphic Designer
Scott Krall joined the
Trains staff as a graphic designer in March 2007. Prior to this, the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh graduate worked in the publishing and printing industries for nearly 10 years.
Scott's interest in trains began at an early age; when annual family vacations took him to Pembine, Wisc., a small community where Canadian National's ex-Soo Line and Escanaba & Lake Superior railroads intersect. This interest continues today, when he takes short Amtrak trips with family and friends to Illinois and Indiana.
Scott lives in Waukesha, Wis., with his wife, Amy, and their daughter, Madaline, and son, Charlie. He enjoys golfing, gardening, and other outdoor activities when the temperamental Wisconsin weather permits. When forced inside, he loves reading about the World War II era and watching movies with his family.
Drew Halverson,
Graphic Designer
Drew Halverson joined the Trains staff as a graphic designer in July 2007, after graduating from Marquette University with a degree in Advertising and Criminology. He works primarily on Trains, Model Railroader and Classic Trains magazines.
Drew's love for trains dates back to childhood, when he remembers watching Wisconsin Central freight trains roll across the countryside. Growing up in Milwaukee, he's very familiar with the local train scene and enjoys kicking back trackside during his free time. Drew is also an avid N scale modeler who enjoys modeling the Florida East Coast Railway.
When not at work, Drew is involved with his other passion, auto racing. Designing Web sites for IndyCar driver, Oriol Servia, and IndyCar team, KV Racing Technology, has allowed him to travel across the country and meet people from around the world. Also a Denver Broncos fan, Drew is eagerly anticipating the upcoming football season.
Mike Yuhas,
Advertising Sales Manager
Mike Yuhas's fascination with railroading began as a child growing up on Long Island, where his dad would take him to the end of the street to watch the evening rush hour parade of homeward-bound commuter trains.
Mike started reading Trains in 1972, and has been with Kalmbach Publishing Co. (and in the state of Wisconsin) since May 1989. An active photographer and railroad enthusiast, his pictures have graced the pages of many issues of Trains. His website,
www.mikeyuhas.org, showcases his work. Mike founded "Trackside with TRAINS" and is a frequent contributor. He's also involved in amateur radio (his call is AB9ON).
Mike, wife Janet, and four children reside within earshot of Union Pacific's Shoreline Subdivision and Canadian National's Saukville Subdivision. He generally despises writing about himself in the third person.
Paul Steinhafel,
Advertising Sales Representative
Paul Steinhafel joined Kalmbach Publishing Co. in summer 2011, and made his way to the advertising sales staff of
Trains a year later. Paul splits his time between
Trains,
Classic Trains and
Model Retailer magazines. He fondly recalls his first scenic train ride on the Algoma Central Railway, and is eager to collect more mileage.
A Wisconsin native, Paul is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, with degrees in history and political science. Prior to his service at Kalmbach, he worked as an account executive for The Onion (America’s Finest News Source).
Paul’s outside interests include hockey, film, collecting vinyl and brewing his own beer. He has accumulated a number of hand-made synthesizers, and collaborates in a band. He resides in the Riverwest neighborhood of Milwaukee with his girlfriend, cat, and Greyhound rescue.
