Before meeting my husband, Ken Kroeger, in December of 1986, I knew precious little about the railroad other than I sometimes had to wait for a slow-moving train to pass before crossing the intersection to get onto the only freeway that traverses Tucson, I-10. Union Pacific lines run alongside the frontage road on the east side of the freeway through most of Tucson.

Ken and I were married in March of 1989, ending my 10-year stint as a single mother of two children. Ken was always an active union member, but his involvement with Division 28 deepened when he was “formally dismissed” following a major derailment in which he was involved in 1990. He helped his local chairman put together a case for his defense, and, although he lost the case at the local level, he won on appeal and was reinstated later that year. Following that incident, he served as a vice local chairman, then in 1995, was elected as the Local Chairman for Div. 28. In late 1997, when Ken suddenly found himself as chairperson for the 1998 International Western Convention to be hosted in Tucson, he asked me to form an auxiliary in Tucson so that I could serve as the auxiliary chairperson for that event. Ken currently serves as a Special Representative for the National Division and is also the Coordinator of the National Education and Training Department.

On March 21, 1998, I was sworn in as the Secretary for Guadalupe Auxiliary No. 28, a position I still hold today. In the fall of 2000, I was asked by then-President Ruth Wyndham to publish the International Auxiliary’s quarterly newsletter. I attended the International Convention in Miami in 2001, as an alternate delegate for a couple of auxiliaries that were unable to send a representative. I also provided the minutes for the Journal of Proceedings. Much to my surprise, I left that convention with the title of 3^rd Vice President for the Grand International Auxiliary. At the next convention, in Las Vegas, in the summer of 2006, when the GIA became the BLET Auxiliary, I was elected as 2^nd Vice President/Assistant National Legislative Representative. Again, I was asked to provide the minutes for the meetings. I then moved into the position of 1^st Vice President/National Legislative Representative in June of 2007 due to the resignation of the 1^st Vice President. In addition to my duties as National Legislative Rep., I also still publish our quarterly newsletter, the BLET Auxiliary News.

As of January 1, 2008, I moved into the position of Vice President for the Auxiliary because of a resignation. In addition to publishing the quarterly newsletter, I also became the editor at that time. I also continued to serve as the National Legislative Representative during that interim period. At the First Quadrennial Convention held in Reno, Nevada, in October 2010, the bylaws were changed to include the position of National Legislative Representative with the National Vice President. I ran for and was elected by acclamation to the position of National Vice President/National Legislative Representative on October 6, 2010.