From The ARRL Letter, June 11, 2021
The Field Services that ARRL HQ provides to its member-volunteers is now in the spotlight with a reorganization and a fresh start to Section Manager and Affiliated Club engagement!
The backbone of ARRL, and the Amateur Radio Service, is the expansive field organization of volunteers. This is especially true of our Board members, our “first among peers,” who provide leadership to this vast network of engaged volunteers. During a marathon series of Zoom calls on Wednesday, June 9 with ARRL Section Managers and most ARRL Board members in attendance, the restructuring of the Field Services organization at HQ was announced.
Bob Naumann, W5OV, who has a lifetime of experience as a radio amateur from contesting, to public service, to working with a number of well-known industry retailers, is now serving as the Director of Operations following the retirement of Norm Fusaro, W3IZ.
Mike Walters, W8ZY, who has been involved with field volunteers for many years and is currently the Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC) for Connecticut, is now serving as the Field Services Manager.
Bart Jahnke, W9JJ, who was managing Field Services, remains responsible for Radiosport and is also taking on the role of Regulatory & Advocacy following the retirement of Dan Henderson, N1ND.
The meetings went on to discuss the focus the ARRL Board has placed on Field Services, working to create a new standing committee to oversee its revitalization and growth. Also discussed were the initiatives being undertaken with Section Managers to foster collaboration, share content, undertake projects, and set expectations.
The first project will be a focused census that a dozen Section Managers across the country will be driving with local clubs to understand the disparity between the ever-growing number of licensed hams versus the unchanging number of active hams.
We are very excited to turn the page and begin this new chapter for Field Services, and to continue forward with our digital transformation of ARRL.