Greetings everyone, welcome to "Dale's Tales" for
March, 2016.
The Great Lakes Division was well represented in the current
issue of Radio Waves, published by the League http://www.arrl.org/files/file/Radio%20Waves%20Newsletter
/Winter%202016%20Radio%20Waves.pdf .
This ARRL periodical is aimed at instructors and
educators, keeping them
informed about ham radio and STEM Programs.
Ohio's West Chester Amateur Radio Association teamed up with National
Voice of America Broadcasting Museum to host "Pi Day + 6" in honor of
May 14. (This year it really stacks up
as 3.14.16 and is also Albert Einstein's birthday). In addition, the West Michigan Aviation
Academy in Grand Rapids has started a ham club as the result of its prep work
for their scheduled ARISS Contact. This
publication may offer your club an introduction to STEM instructors in your
area and open an opportunity to begin a local school program for prospective hams. Check it out.
As announced in this column last month, Chief Operating
Officer, Harold Kramer W1JB is entering the world of retirees. Knowing Harold, I suspect this is not the
last we will hear from him. I spoke
with him on the phone Friday and we talked a little about some of his plans.
These will include an opportunity to do a little writing and probably make some
other interesting contributions to ham radio.
Please feel free to extend your well wishes to Harold at WJ1B@arrl.org.
A special thanks goes out to the Cherryland Amateur Radio
Club for their warm hospitality when Michigan Section Manager Larry WB8R,
Monroe County EC Dave AC8SI and your ARRL Director Dale WA8EFK "dropped
in" for a visit at their February club meeting. The three of us were attending the Michigan
Statewide Interoperability Conference in Traverse City and could not pass the
opportunity for an evening visit with the club.
I am pleased to report that Amateur Radio is playing a
continually more important part in Michigan's overall emergency communications
plan. This Interoperability Conference,
which was hosted by the Homeland Security Division of the MI State Police, devoted several
hours of time to Auxiliary Communications, which is based upon ARES®, NTS,
CAP, MARS, SATERN how these groups are organized, operate and respond in emergencies. Michigan
Section manager John McDonough WB8RCR also detailed RACES, covering what it is
and what it is not. The several hundred
conference attendees were from police, fire, EMT, Emergency Management and first responder teams from across the
state.
Great Lakes Division members can be proud of their
respective Section leadership teams for their diligence in working with their
individual state's Emergency Management organizations and promoting a very positive
atmosphere relating to the services that we radio amateur operators can provide
for our communities. While each of our
three Sections has its own unique operating relationship with state officials,
amateur radio is highly regarded in every case.
This is not to say all is perfect, certainly not, as we have many
opportunities to improve. We all need to
strive for accurate documentation, uniform registration and timely
reporting. ARRL Leadership is working to
reduce the burden of complying with these needs, and over the next few months,
we may begin testing these services in selected locations. Remember, our agency
partner leadership managers see the reporting numbers and stats, lets insure
that we continue to keep them up to date and accurate. These figures show how much we do, and what
cost benefits our services provide to each partner-agency.
TOM'S COMMENTS:
Comments from our Vice Director Tom Delany W8WTD
Last weekend, I listened in on a conversation on HF. One by one, the voices of some young girls came on, talking with another girl.
First steps in radio. Then I
realized I had had a similar contact a year ago with the same station, but had no young person in my shack
to speak to them. The station was from
New Brunswick, Canada, and the woman ham was introducing Girl Guides (the equivalent of our Girl
Scouts) to ham radio. It was
great to hear the enthusiasm for making contacts.
I still have the QSL cards that I got from each of the young
ladies I talked to. And am sure these
girls were even happier to talk to someone young like themselves. From what I could piece together, the girl on
the other end was the six-year-old daughter of that ham operator, and I think
they were in Great Britain. Band
conditions were not favoring their signal in my direction, but the Canadians
were loud and clear.
The experience made me think about our outreach to youth in
this country. It’s not easy to go from
that initial contact to a license, but we’re out there trying to make it
happen. We have programs in place, from
JOTA (Jamboree on the Air) to Kid’s Day on the Radio, to school clubs and
license classes. We all have to do our
part to make sure that the airwaves are a welcome and happy experience for
young people, whether they are just learning how radio works, or whether they are
applying science concepts and figuring out how interesting ham radio can
be. A salute to those who work with
youth, and a reminder to us all to be welcoming on the air!
Friends in high places--
You all know that there are a few hams in Congress, such as Rep. Greg
Walden, W7EQI, of Oregon, on the subcommittee for Communications and
Technology, and some others, including a new ham, Rep. Steve Pearce of New
Mexico. Rep. Walden has been helpful in
many ways, not least of which is calling FCC attention to the problem of
interference.
Closer to home, in the fall elections, Kentucky got a new
governor and lieutenant governor, and it just so happens that the lieutenant governor
is a ham. Her name is Jenean Hampton,
and her call is K5EIB. The Northern Kentucky Amateur Radio Club invited her to
speak at their February meeting, and she accepted their invitation. She is particularly interested in spreading
the word about the emergency communications capabilities that ham radio
provides. An engineer by background, she
is now an extra class licensee. She doesn’t
have a lot of time to be on the air, but anything any of the Kentucky hams can do
to help her will probably be much appreciated.
She will be a good advocate for ham radio, and will be counting on us
during emergencies. I’m sure her trust will be well-placed.
A few of you have noticed that the Great Lakes Division now
has a Facebook page. If you haven’t
noticed, please take a look. Granted, Facebook
is not for everyone, but for those who participate, it’s one more way of
keeping in touch with activities of the Division. Please let us know what you think. Thanks go out to Greg, W0QI, Kentucky ASM, whose
initiative got it going.
It’s Hamfest season again.
In March, I plan to be in Cave City, KY and Kalamazoo, MI. I’m Looking forward to seeing many of you
during those times. Stop by and say
hello.
73, Tom W8WTD Vice
Director, Great Lakes Division
Newington, CT 06111.
HAMFESTING: Here is
the current Great Lakes Division ARRL Sanctioned Hamfest Schedule for the next
few weeks. These swaps have received their
sanctioning approval from ARRL HQ at the time of this publication. We have
approximately 65 hamfests each year in the Great Lakes Division. I do encourage each Hamfest Chair to register
early for ARRL Sanctioning. It is never
too early to register your hamfest with Headquarters. Be sure to invite your ARRL Officials as soon
as your date is set. Help avoid date
conflicts, do it early!
Mar 5 - Cave City -
Cave City, KY
Mar 6 - NOARS -
Elyria, OH
Mar 19 - Crossroads - Kalamazoo, MI
Mar 20 - TMRA Hamfest - Perrysburg, OH
Mar 26 - MOVARC - Gallipolis, OH
Apr 2 - Portsmouth - Portsmouth, OH
Apr 9 - Cuyahoga Falls - Cuyahoga Falls, OH
Apr 19 - Letcher County - Whitesburg, KY
Apr 24 - Athens - Athens, OH
May 7 - Cadillac - Cadillac, MI
May 14 - Chassell Hamfest - Chassel, MI
May 20-22 - Dayton HamVention - Dayton, OH
73, See you on the bands.
Dale Williams WA8EFK
Director
Great Lakes Division
