Clinics

The Priest family = trains, trains, trains!

Cinthia began her interest in trains on her first date with her now-husband, Stephen Priest, MMR. It was the beautiful backdrop of Matfield Green, Kansas, along Santa Fe’s Transcon, where the first diesel-spotting lessons began. Her writing/editing career launched in 1988 when she won the young author contest in Model Railroader Magazine for her kitbashed ATSF GP35 (under her maiden name).

In 2006, she became Assistant Editor of the National Model Railroad Association’s monthly national publication, Scale Rails (now NMRA Magazine). She was promoted to Senior Editor of the NMRA Magazine in 2014 and continues to serve in that role. Her formal hobby media positions began in the early 1990s when Stephen and Cinthia were CTC Board magazine’s Santa Fe news editors. Cinthia took over the editorial reins of CTC Board’s successor monthly magazine, Railroads Illustrated, in 2007, which became Railroads Illustrated Annual in 2015. She continued in that role through 2018. Cinthia served as the volunteer Editor of the National Model Railroad Association’s Mid-Continent Region’s quarterly publication, Caboose Kibitzer, between 2008 and 2011. As if that wasn’t enough magazine content to edit every month, Cinthia also served as the assistant editor of Model Railroad News from 2012 through 2018. Plotting these dates on a calendar, she handled the editorial duties for multiple magazines simultaneously — all while raising an Eagle Scout (and the youngest person to earn Master Model Railroader) and assisting Stephen with Railroad Model Craftsman magazine and other modeling adventures.

Additionally, Cinthia has authored/coauthored nine books and edited another 17 books, covering Santa Fe topics mainly. Cinthia has given numerous clinics at various NMRA conventions and other events, including a few keynote speaker bookings. She has also earned several awards for her model railroading projects. She is currently working toward achieving the distinction of Master Model Railroader, hoping to become the first family to all have earned MMR. (Cinthia’s husband and son have already earned their MMR.) As of early 2026, she has only one certificate remaining.

Cinthia co-chaired the Non-Rail events during the 2018 NMRA National Convention in Kansas City. She also provided volunteer help restoring Santa Fe 5704, a bicentennial-painted SD45-2, between 2020 and 2022. Cinthia graduated from the University of Kansas with a Doctor of Pharmacy degree in 1994. She is currently a Principal Trainer and Pharmacy Informatics Training Coordinator at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri. She lives with her husband of 36 years and two sassy cats in Parkville, Missouri.