Two events held together in Finch to raise money to create museum for Clare Depo Preservation Society

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Dog Tales Handler Kelly Williams said working with children who enjoy the company of her dogs, Rider and Daphne, makes her smile.

“Being a part of this is so worth it,” the Mount Pleasant resident said.

Williams was one of about five handlers present at a charity for the organization at the 30th annual Mid-Michigan Model Train Show Sunday at Finch Fieldhouse.

Larry Lewis is co-founder of Dog Tales, a non-profit, with his wife Betty, an executive secretary in the religion and philosophy department at Central Michigan University. Lewis said he held the events together in the same location to provide information to the public about both organizations.

“We split the profit half and half between the the two,” Lewis said. “We are trying to restore and create a museum for the Clare Depo Preservation Society.”

The museum will be a collection of railroad history and will include the stories of families who have been in the Clare area for at least 100 years, he said.

“You can compare this event as something similar to a big flea market,” said Grand Rapids resident Harry Jones. “Some people here are dealers, some own hobby shops, but for me it’s sideline — I buy and sell model trains.”

Jones has been in the business for 15 years. He said this works well as something to do in his spare time because it helps to supplement his income.

“I sell collectibles from the ‘40s and ‘50s for somewhere between $140 and $175,” Jones said. “Back then, they were only about $8.”

Comstock Park resident Jimmy Mull, who works as a manufacturer, also was at the event. He manufactures train cleaning cars; he turned his hobby into a business called Jam Creations.

“I’ve been nuts about trains since I was three years old,” Mull said. “But, I’ve only been in this business for about six years.”

The table for Dog Tales was set up at the entrance of Finch, and several teams of handlers and dogs were at the event. Lewis and his wife founded Dog Tales 10 years ago. According to a brochure available at the event, the mission is to improve the literacy of children through the use of registered therapy dogs as literacy mentors.

It also said the organization was created in an attempt to make children more comfortable reading aloud in the classroom setting. Information gathered by members of the non-profit said when children were able to read aloud to dogs, their self-esteem and reading in class greatly improved.