At a recent meeting of the Livonia Amateur Radio Club, I had the opportunity to give a brief presentation about ARRL and many of the benefits it offers to our members. At the usual Q & A session following the talk we discussed the frequent topic of getting more people interested in this great hobby. The current proposal to open certain small segments of the HF bands to Technicians led into the discussion about what age level the Livonia Club found entering amateur radio.
Many groups struggle to bring up the interest level of youth (our prime targets) in ham radio. My recent personal experience has found folks between 35 and 50 becoming hams as they have pretty well raised their families and have reached the point where they may have some discretionary funds to invest in ham gear. Livonia's experience was a bit of a surprise to me: retirees! I think for many of the same reasons I had found in my experience.
In the end analysis, I think this all shows that there is no particular focus for us in bringing our friends in to ham radio. We need to concentrate on everyone, every age group and folks in every endeavor as
prime candidates for becoming hams. Now wait! Why do we do this? Because we need to insure that we keep pace with those who leave the hobby, either because of them becoming Silent Keys, are dissatisfied with the hobby (I know, hard to believe) or have a life that is just too busy for the hobby.
All of this being said, there is one very major point where we seem to fail; that of being good stewards for amateur radio. We fail miserably at mentoring. Period! How many new hams have you mentored this year?
Last year? In the last 5-10 years? Take a local sample of how many new hams remained or got active after getting their license. Do a search of how many hams live within a 10 mile radio of your home QTH. How many do you know? How many have you actually met? How many have you talked with on the air?
Here comes the confession: I did this yesterday and found 10 within 4 miles of me! OUCH! Here comes the vow: within the next 4 weeks I will make an effort to reach out to each of them, by phone, e-mail, letter or personal visit to learn about their ham activities. We should not allow any new ham to be overlooked or forgotten.
TOM'S COMMENTS: Comments from our Vice Director Tom Delaney W8WTD
This month, a note in the Wave Bender, the publication of the Western Reserve club in Ohio, caught my attention. (Yes, I do read newsletters that are sent along.) It was a brief note by Steve, KC8SOY, about volunteering for club duties, and the use of repeaters. We’ve never met, but thank you, Steve, for the reminders.
We all struggle with things like club membership and member involvement.
Some clubs try to have activities, and members don’t respond. Others don’t have as many activities, and so members don’t get together very often. In other clubs, even very active ones, the members are engaged and things happen, but leadership positions, even just event planning, let alone officer positions, are hard to find volunteers for. Does your club have a full slate of officers this year? And are people willing to step up and be officers next year?
It’s easy to be critical. In today’s social environment, there are lots of demands on everyone’s time, from family, work, and other interests. A healthy balance says that many of us can’t spend any more time than we already do in volunteering, no matter what it is.
From another perspective, what do we value? That’s where we put our time. No question, ham radio is not the most important thing in the world. What place does it have in your life? If you like the people you associate with in radio, and the activities interest you, what about putting in some time and effort into a club or an event? Ham radio is a social activity. We don’t have one-way conversations. If we want ham radio to survive into the future, we have to keep it going at the local—people—level.
Another thing that Steve mentioned is the use of repeaters. It’s clear that we’ll never again see activity levels like the 1980s and 1990s. Back then, there was so much activity, much of it mobile. Now I can check my phone app for traffic updates, and don’t need to depend on reports from other hams who may or may not be in the vicinity. And I certainly don’t need a phone patch.
Is there any value left to repeater communication? It’s always there for emergency communications, that is, if we don’t lose the frequencies for lack of use. And a good conversation can help us meet other hams, and that promotes familiarity which helps interest in club meetings. Many of us have gotten out of the habit of turning on a radio to monitor. And more of us are reluctant to answer the few calls we hear.
There’s a certain amount of criticism here. But those who know me know that I’m an optimist. And as I travel around the Division at meetings and hamfests, I meet a lot of enthusiastic new hams who are just learning about the hobby, as well as dedicated veterans who still love ham radio. To the new people, I’d remind you that you probably have some skill that you could contribute to a club. If you belong to a club, step up. If you don’t, try to find one and see if that doesn’t help your appreciation of ham radio. And for the old-timers, of which I am certainly one, stay connected! One conversation on a repeater may solve a problem for a new ham, or persuade them to join your club. It’s worth keeping that radio on!
--73, Tom W8WTD Vice Director, Great Lakes Division
HAMFESTING: Here is the current Great Lakes Division ARRL Sanctioned Hamfest Schedule covering the next few months. These swaps have received their sanctioning approval from ARRL HQ at the time of this publication. If you plan to request ARRL Sanctioning, please be sure to do it well in advance of your Hamfest date, as this allows adequate time
for QST Listings. Be sure to invite your ARRL Officials as soon as
your date is set. With 52 weeks and 65 hamfests, things do double up a little. Plan ahead for requesting your ARRL Officials to attend.
10/6/18 Vette City Bowling Green, KY
10/11-14/18 Microwave Update Fairborn, OH
10/13/18 Cave Run Hamfest Moorehead, KY
10/20/18 Muskegon Color Tour Muskegon, MI
10/21/18 Kalamazoo Hamfest Kalamazoo, MI
10/27/18 Hazard Hazard, KY
10/28/18 Massillon Massillon, OH
10/28/18 USECA Madison Hgts, MI
11/3/18 Grant ARC Hamfest Georgetown, OH
12/1/18 Fulton Co. Winterfest Delta, Oh
12/22/18 Lanse Creuse Hamfest Madison Hts, MI
Be sure to check your Section's news pages for the latest local happenings, club and net information.
73, Let's go light up the bands,
Dale Williams WA8EFK
Director
Great Lakes Division
wa8efk@arrl.org
