Bidding Begins to End - Thursday, January 31, 2019 at 2:00 PM CST. (See Individual Items for Exact Closing Times).
This online only auction includes items from the Estate of Patrick Irvin Plemons of Memphis, Tennessee. Obituary from the Commercial Appeal: Pat Plemons passed away Monday at St. Francis hospital in Bartlett. Born July 30, 1938 in Memphis with a broken neck, Pat was not expected to live long; the doctors first giving him 6 years, then 12 years, then 18, before finally giving up on such predictions. Never was there a man with a more valid excuse to be idle and consumed by his physical shortcomings, but Pat had no time for such foolish notions. After working two years at Jim's Model Train Shop, Pat decided to open his own business at just 22 years old. Hobbies of Memphis opened in May 1960 and was a foundation of the Memphis community until the day it closed in Aug 1989. And while running a full time business might be challenging to you or me, Pat filled every moment with a hundred other things. The Hobby shop was a place that brought in young and old, rich and poor, and gave Pat a chance to teach kids to be proper business men while helping them work through challenges in their own lives. In 1974 Pat started "Sentimental Journeys Inc." for the purpose of raising funds for LeBonheur Children's Hospital. SJI ran excursion trains with steam locomotives on an annual basis until 1986, giving thousands of children the chance to see and feel "the steam train experience," while also giving some of the older people the chance to relive the glory days of steam. For his efforts, Pat was awarded the LeBonheur Concerned Children's Award, at the time only the 2nd such award to be given out. Around 1980, Pat founded the nonprofit Memphis Transportation Museum for the preservation and restoration of historic trains, planes, and vehicles. Throughout its span, MTM maintained up to 8 fully operational railcars (which at the time was the second largest fleet in the nation, Amtrak being number one), a 1928 White Taxi, a GP7 diesel locomotive, and was the curator of the Memphis Belle. Several of those railcars resided in Collierville for many years, before returning to active service with other private railroads, along with the #1351 Frisco steam locomotive which is still there, Pat having worked out a deal with Mayor Herman Cox to house the trains there. Pat also led a successful campaign to have the trolley cars returned to downtown Memphis, something he was very proud of. Pat was an avid reader and historian, having read thousands of books, but most of all he loved people. He saw in us the things we could become if we applied ourselves, even if we didn't realize it. There is a theory that any person in the world is no more than 5 people disconnected from anyone else. That is to say that you may not know the president, but a friend of a friend of a friend may know him. I don't know if it's true, but I know that I was only ever one person away from anyone by knowing Pat. Pat met two presidents, knew numerous Senators and congressmen, business leaders from all over the country, and hundreds of other people including: Elvis, Johnny Cash, Fred Smith, Col. Robert Morgan (pilot Memphis Belle), Margaret Polk (the Memphis Belle!). Pat taught me that absolutely nothing is out of reach to those willing to work for their dreams. But equally important, those who sacrifice to enrich the lives of others will never be left wanting for friends.