DAVID WILLIAMS
David Williams has been involved with trains practically all his life. His childhood fascination with trains got him into trouble at school- he spent more time gazing out of the window at the nearby goods yard than he did on his lessons!
Alongside his professional life as a draughtsman and transport engineer, David joined the Severn Valley Railway in 1966, 7 months after the group had formed. After over five decades with the SVR, David stepped down as Chairman of the Board- just one of the many positions he has held with the charity over his volunteering time!
At first David got involved with meetings and work parties, as well as editing the Severn Valley Railway magazine. He also joined syndicates which raised money and bought three locomotives. His love of the footplate led him to joining the first SVR training course to become a fireman, and after 5 years in this role, he trained as an engine driver and spent a further 9 years driving passenger steam trains to and from Bridgnorth virtually every weekend season.
LISTEN TO DAVID WILLIAMS
(TALKING TO TOM RICHARDSON)
In this extract, David explains how his 14 years on the footplate began. He also describes raising the money to help buy steam locomotive 43106.
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