Holiday Express will stop in Gravette

Announces fundraiser for needy children

Kansas City Southern Holiday Express
Kansas City Southern Holiday Express

— Kansas City Southern railroad announced this month that Gravette will be one of the stops for their 16th annual Holiday Express train. Gravette is one of 22 communities in seven states listed on this year's schedule. At each stop, visitors can board the train, visit with Santa and his elves and tour the inside of three cars of the festive six-car train. Each event is free and open to the public. The local visit is scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 13, at 4 p.m., and the train will stop at the intersection of Arkansas Highway 59 and Atlanta Street, S.E.

Led by KCS' Southern Belle business train, the Holiday Express train includes the smiling tank car "Rudy," a flatcar carrying Santa's sleigh, reindeer and a miniature village, a gingerbread boxcar, a newly remodeled elves' workshop, the reindeer stable and a little red caboose. Each car is dressed in lights.

The KCS Holiday Express was built on the tradition of the Santa Train, which ran on a segment of the network bought by KCS in 1997. In 2000, a group of warm-hearted KCS employees noticed that the Santa Train was the only Christmas some children had, and some of those children did not have essential items like coats, hats and gloves, so they committed to expanding the project. In 2001, volunteers transformed a retired freight train to the experience that communities throughout KCS' U.S. service territory enjoy today.

In addition to these free public events, KCS' Holiday Express has a charitable component. Over 16 years, the project has raised well over $1 million to purchase gift cards, which are donated to the Salvation Army at each scheduled stop. These gift cards are used to purchase warm clothing and other necessities for children in the local community.

"KCS is pleased to continue its long-standing Holiday Express tradition," said president and CEO Patrick J. Ottensmeyer. "As a company, we value family and being responsible corporate citizens. It is a pleasure to give back and bring the holiday spirit to communities where we operate and where our employees live and work."

Anyone interested in making a tax-deductible contribution to the 2016 KCS Holiday Express fundraising campaign may do so by visiting www.kcsouthern.com. The campaign will close Oct. 31.

Headquartered in Kansas City, Mo., KCS is a transportation holding company that has railroad investments in the U.S., Mexico and Panama. Its primary U.S. holding is The Kansas City Southern Railway Company, serving the central and south central U.S. Its international holdings include Kansas City Southern de Mexico, S.A. de C.V., serving northeastern and central Mexico and the port cities of Lazaro Cardenas, Tampico and Veracruz, and a 50 percent interest in Panama Canal Railway Company, providing ocean-to-ocean freight and passenger service along the Panama Canal. KCS' North American rail holdings and strategic alliances are primary components of a NAFTA Railway system, linking the commercial and industrial centers of the U.S., Mexico and Canada.

General News on 10/05/2016