Who Are We?
Founded in 2018, Allegany Preservation Society Limited is a grassroots organization with a bold plan to seek, develop, and provide partnerships with organizations and agencies that will preserve, develop and provide operational and educational assistance for the continued enlightenment and enjoyment of future generations.

Our Team

Trevor Laber
President

Trevor was born and raised in Cumberland, Maryland and had an early interest in anything mechanically that moved as well as history.  Trevor graduated from Allegany High School in 2011 and began his first job with the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad where his mechanical abilities progressed until 2014 when he found himself on the Adirondack Scenic Railroad in Central New York. Trevor has become a "jack of all trades" due to his variety of interests including trains, ships, urban exploration and video production.

​In an effort to expand upon his interest in history, Trevor, alongside long-time friend Mike Roche began the original foundation which later became Allegany Preservation Society Limited in 2018. The society became a legal 501(c)(3) not-for-profit entity in 2020.
Trevor is currently a member of the Western New York Gas & Steam Engine Association (WNYGSEA) and the Friends of The East Broad Top (FEBT).
​
Trevor currently resides in Cumberland, Maryland.​
Mike Roche
​Secretary & Treasurer
J. Michael (Mike) Roche is an Emmy Award nominee with decades of experience working in the television/audio industry and with a wide variety of non-profit organizations in the Washington, DC, metropolitan area. 

Mike honed his skills as a professional audio engineer and videographer taking on assignments that include agriculture, industrial, historic documentation, entertainment, medical, local, state and federal government contracting, national and international news.

In addition, Mike has many years working in a railroad environment producing executive statements and employee training media for Amtrak’s Governmental Affairs office in Washington DC. 

​

Gerald R. Bertoldo, DVM
Vice President

Jerry was born and raised on Staten Island, New York, one of the five boroughs of New York City. He had an early interest in ships, railroads, horses, architecture, history and conservation. He was accepted into the College of Agriculture at Cornell University in 1970 hoping for a career as an equine veterinarian. He was accepted into the College of Veterinary Medicine in 1973 and graduated in 1977. Upon graduation, Jerry worked in a mixed practice in the Hudson Valley for two years then relocated to Western New York to join a large animal (mostly dairy) practice. In 1999 he left clinical practice to join Agway Feed and Nutrition as a member of their dairy technical services group covering New York and Pennsylvania. In 2004 he accepted a position with Cornell University as a dairy management specialist covering ten
western counties of New York working for Cornell Cooperative Extension retiring in 2018. He has lived near Attica, New York since 1979.

Shortly after the start of his first semester at Cornell in 1970, Jerry met a fellow student who would later become one his railroad partners. This gent’s dad had recently purchased an old, rural Lehigh Valley depot. He became involved with its restoration to the as-built 1902 appearance and subsequent emergence as the Tioga Transportation Museum. The focus was varied, not only including railroad memorabilia and equipment, but horse drawn vehicles, antique cars and early bicycles. Starting in 1978, the museum operated a ¼ mile ride on Sundays behind a 40-ton steam locomotive that Jerry owned with his father. A diesel-powered passenger business (1984) and a freight operation (1986) on the remaining 26 miles of the ex-Lehigh Valley Auburn Branch ensued. The railroad owners decided to relocate the tourist enterprise to Wellsboro, PA in 1993. They resumed operations in 1994 continuing the tradition of on board café and dining car service. The railroad was sold after the 2007 season. Jerry went on to volunteer at the Adirondack Railroad as a conductor, engineer and occasionally the caterer on one of the two business cars on the property. He is a member of The Friends of the East Broad Top (FEBT) and regularly devotes time on the Track Crew. 

Sarah Graves
​​Community Relations Director

Sarah was born and raised in Western New York and has had an interest in steam power, trains & ships since childhood. Sarah graduated high school in 2014 and went on to earn an Associate’s Degree in Liberal Arts & Sciences (A.S.) from Genesee Community College in 2017. After college, Sarah secured her current position in Finance, but continued to maintain an interest in steam power, trains & ships. 

​Sarah met Jerry and Trevor in 2022 through a mutual interest in steam traction engines and became the Community Relations Director for APSL in December 2022. Sarah is an active member of the Western New York Gas & Steam Engine Association (WNYGSEA) and The New York Steam Engine Association (NYSEA) where she crews the association’s steam traction engines.
​ 
Sarah currently resides in Western New York, but can often be found in Pennsylvania and Maryland.
​
​
​Jeff Rayner
Property Manager/CMO
Jeff was born and raised in Farmington Hills, Michigan and had an early interest in construction, trains and engineering. Jeff graduated college in 1994, with a degree in Engineering. He has been employed  as a Field Coordinator with G2 Consulting Group for 26 years. 

​Jeff has been a member of the Ft. Wayne Railroad Historical Society (FWRHS) since 1991, the Steam Railroading Institute (SRI) since 2005, and was a volunteer with the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad (WMSR) from 2005-2008.
​
Jeff currently resides near Detroit, Michigan.

​
Follow us on Social Media:
©2023 Allegany Preservation Society Limited. All rights reserved.