07/31/2026
This is Jack Honts. He is one of our valued crew members, and he needs our help!
While his family calls him Tatum, his railroad family at OCSR calls him Jack, partially because he is the Jack of all trades and partially because he doesn't like going by Tatum at work! Jack does a little of everything at OCSR; track work, shop hand, signal maintenance, train conducting, locomotive firing, you name it. Jack started with us as a Ticket Agent years ago, and he has grown into many roles at the railroad, working his way up through the ranks in part due to his calm demeanor and unwavering work ethic. Most recently Jack was trained as a Locomotive Engineer and officially promoted only 3 weeks ago.
Unfortunately, Jack wont be behind the throttle for a while. Earlier this week, Jack got in a horrific car accident that resulted in serious injuries. To say Jack is lucky to be alive is an understatement, and to say that this accident has left our whole staff shaken up is an even bigger understatement. The mood is somewhat somber right now, but we are keeping our heads high and running trains for hundreds of guests each day. That's the way Jack would want it.
While equipment and infrastructure are an important part of any railroad, none of it would be useful without talented people. Put simply, good people are the most important part of a successful railroad, they are what make the whole operation tick. Jack is an integral part of OCSR, and we want to help him have a speedy recovery. So, we are asking for your help. While we often ask for donations for equipment restoration and capital projects, today we are asking you to help our friend and colleague, Jack. His extended family has set up a Go Fund Me to help Jack and his immediate family as they navigate this tragedy. Any donation, big or small, helps them out.
The link to donate to Jack's Go Fund Me is here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-tatum-honts-recover-after-car-accident
Our thoughts go out to Jack's friends and family during his recovery. There is a long road ahead to full recovery and we hope our fans and friends will consider giving back to our colleague who has helped create happy memories so many visitors to the Oregon Coast Scenic Railroad.