About The LA Division


Welcome to the Los Angeles Division of the Pacific Southwest Region/NMRA!

We're delighted you've found our website. Please take a moment to explore and discover all that we have to offer.

Our community includes all National Model Railroad Association (NMRA) members in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties of Southern California. We're a passionate and talented group of model railroaders, prototype enthusiasts, and general hobbyists who love sharing our interests, no matter the scale or focus. Among us, you'll find expert model builders, scenic artists, historians, prototype rivet counters, scale operators, electronics wizards, technology gurus, and creative geniuses. What unites us is our shared love for model railroading.

We enjoy gathering for Division meets and Regional conventions to celebrate and share our hobby. Whether you're an experienced modeler or just starting out, there's a place for you here.

If you're not yet a member of the NMRA, we invite you to join us. The benefits are immense, including advocacy, standards, and social interactions that will deepen your understanding and enjoyment of model railroading. As a member, you'll be automatically assigned to a local region and division based on your home address. To learn more, visit the NMRA Membership Application and Renewal.

Take a moment to browse our pages. Check out our modeling projects, find contact information for our officers, or discover local shops, clubs, and points of interest. We welcome all who are interested in model railroading and are here to connect you with the right people to answer your questions.

Join us, and let's build something incredible together!

Jeff Smith

Superintendent, Los Angeles Division

The Los Angeles Division

We are a group of more than 200 members in Los Angeles and Ventura counties in southern California. We are one of 150 local groups, called "divisions", of the National Model Railroad Association (NMRA) across the world. The Los Angeles Division is, in turn, part of the Pacific Southwest Region of the NMRA, which includes three other divisions covering all of Southern California, the state of Arizona, and Southern Nevada.

We hold a monthly virtual meeting on the first Thursday of every month at 7pm.  These informal "Sand House Chats" are a round-table where members can share information and talk about whatever interests them.

In addition to our website, we are active on multiple social media sites, including:

The LA Coupler

All Division members receive the "LA Division Coupler," our quarterly newsletter via email.

Division Leadership

If you have any questions, feedback, or ideas please contact someone on our leadership team.  Not sure who to contact? Contact any of us and we will make sure the message gets to the right person.

Division Officers

  • Director: Vic Cavalli, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  • Superintendent: Jeff Smith, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  • Chief Clerk: Nick Lisica, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  • Pay Master: Kevin Spady,  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Member Services Team

  • Membership Recruitment Chair: John McGreevy, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  • Members' Aid Chair: Vacant
  • Events Scheduling: Vacant

Communications Team

  • LA Coupler Editor: Nick Lisica, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  • Events Coordinator: Vacant
  • Social Media Manager: Kevin Spady, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  • Webmaster: Mark Fischer, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  • Assistant Webmaster: Vacant
  • Publicity/Graphics Manager: Nick Lisica, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Other

  • Contest/Achievement Chair: Gary Butts, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  • Division Historian: Vacant
  • Nomination and Elections Chair: John McGreevy, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
  • Non-Rail Coordinator: Vacant

Recognition and Awards

Coming Soon.

Los Angeles Division Buddy Program

The objective of the Buddy Program is to pair up more experienced L.A. Division “mentors” with newly enrolled “buddy” members (or even longer-termed ones); thus providing each buddy with a resource for assistance, guidance, direction or information they might request about the NMRA or the LA Division. 

Depending on the mentor a buddy is matched with, this might include:

  • Helping the newer member meet other like-interested modelers​
  • Answering questions or directing them to others who might have an answer
  • Providing experience or informal support when thought advisable
  • Arranging with them to attend events or meets, either virtually or physically
  • Finding ways to keep the newer member interested and engaged in the NMRA and the hobby
  • Introducing them to NMRA programs, such as the Achievement Program or EduTRAIN
  • Determining, then building upon their passions; allowing the newer member to branch out into other areas of the hobby
  • Suggesting ways the newer member might find enjoyable while contributing to the Division and Region

While reading through this list of possibilities, should you view yourself as either a mentor or someone who’d like to be "buddy’d-up", feel free to contact any of our Board members.  We are looking for someone to manage this program.  If you are interested please reach out to our Superintendent or Director.

Advisory Board Minutes

The Los Angeles Division Advisory Board meets monthly to discuss and make decisions about the Division.  The minutes from recent meetings are included below:

The Pacific Southwest Region

The Pacific Southwest Region (PSR) of the National Model Railroad Association (NMRA) consists of four Divisions in the Southwestern United States:

  • The Arizona Division covers the state of Arizona
  • The Cajon Division includes Orange County, San Bernardino County, and Riverside County, in California, and Southern Nevada
  • The Los Angeles Division covers the Metropolitan Los Angeles area, Ventura and Palmdale to the North, and Claremont to the East
  • The San Diego Division covers San Diego and Imperial Counties

Each Division has its own meetings and activities. Those activities include visiting model train layouts of the Division members and of model train clubs in the area.  The meetings can be very informative for the model railroader and most Divisions include clinic presentations at their meetings covering modeling topics such as weathering model railroad cars and building structures for model layouts. 

The biggest annual event for the Pacific Southwest Region is the regional convention. Any NMRA member as well as members of the public are invited to join us at a PSR convention. The convention has many model railroad activities including an array of clinics, prototype tours, contests, layout tours and a swap meet.

The PSR 2026 regional convention is being hosted by the San Diego Division on September 9-13 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel San Diego-Mission Valley on September, 7450 Hazard Center Drive, San Diego, California. 

Click here for detailed convention information and to register for the convention.

Neighboring NMRA Regions and Divisions

The NMRA's Pacific Coast Region (PCR) covers central and northern California and northern Nevada.  It includes the Coast Division, the Daylight Division, the Redwood Empire Division, and the Sierra Division. 

Farther north is the Pacific Northwest Region (PNR), which covers a vast geographic area stretching from Alaska, the Yukon and Northwest Territories in the north, down through the Western Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan to the US states of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Montana.  

The Rocky Mountain Region includes Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming, and portions of South Dakota and Texas.