A committee has been formed to plan for the fundraising necessary to complete the Tehachapi Depot that was destroyed in the June 13th fire. The committee is made up of volunteers from several nonprofit groups such as the Friends of the Tehachapi Depot (FOTD), the Tehachapi Heritage League, Main Street Tehachapi, the City of Tehachapi and other interested individuals.

On Friday morning of the Depot fire, Del Troy who has been involved for 35 years in the effort to acquire and restore the Tehachapi Depot said, "You have to believe that something good will come out of this." All of Tehachapi seems to agree. The City of Tehachapi has made the commitment to rebuild the Depot and our citizens have stepped forward to fully support that decision.

As heartbreaking as the fire’s destruction has been to those dedicated citizens working on its restoration, an unexpected outpouring of community spirit has been heard all over town about the tragedy. I don't think those involved in the project realized the depth of feelings from so many people in the community and their anticipation of seeing the restored Depot as the focal point of a vital Downtown Tehachapi. Cash donations are already coming in.

A team of volunteers from the Tehachapi Heritage League and Friends of the Tehachapi Depot (FOTD) has been cataloging the Stokoe Collection for the City and has begun cataloging items given to FOTD for display in the Depot. There are over 300 items in the Stokoe Collection alone. Exhibit planning, graphics, photo reproduction and research has been ongoing so that once the Depot was completed, exhibits could be installed. Fortunately, none of these items had been moved into the Depot and are all in a safe place.