Adventure at the Fort—New England Regional Scouting Jamboree a Huge Success: Cub Scouts Love Radio

The Newport County (RI) Radio Club was a strong presence at Saturday’s wildly successful Scouting Jamboree Adventure public day at historic Fort Adams (1799) in Newport, Rhode Island. Over 3000 Scouts attended this post-covid New England regional Jamboree weekend.

One of the day’s highlights was a dramatic Coast Guard helicopter to water rescue drill watched with rapt attention by the cross-generation crowds on a perfect day.

The large and active Newport (RI) County Radio Club set up multiple hands-on stations across the west side of Fort Adams facing Narragansett Bay, and NCRC volunteers spoke all day with hundreds of Scouts and adults eager to learn more about making satellite contacts, GMRS, CW, HF, and well-received demos on the principles of radio communication.

A special shout out in this post to the 5th grade Cub Scouts who rallied around NCRC Scouting Jamboree lead, John Vecoli, KC1KOO, shown below with Cub Scouts from packs across RI, including East Greenwich and Richmond. Nearby, 5th grade Cub Scouts Valerie and Ingrid from Newport’s small but vibrant coed pack were excited to hear about becoming a licensed radio operator from NCRC new hams Nolan Byrne, K1PRU, and Pat Strong, K2PRU, from Prudence Island who loved mentoring the girls on their own new radios. The future looked bright today!

Contributed by Nancy Austin, KC1NEK, NCRC (RI) club president

Merrimack Valley ARA (MVARA) Achieves 501.c.3 Status and ARRL Affiliation

Merrimack Valley ARA logoThe Merrimack Valley Amateur Radio Association (MVARA) had its first meeting this evening having achieved several milestones in its effort to build on recent successes in providing mesh network back-up for NEDECN DMR repeaters.  The club plans to expand its network of interconnected hospitals and repeater sites and it is now positioned to apply for grant funding.  In addition, the club’s ARRL affiliation makes it possible to obtain ARRL support, available to all affiliated clubs.

With the focus on mesh expansion in New Hampshire and grant funding recently secured in Maine and Rhode Island, the expansion of interconnected amateur communications networks throughout New England is making visible progress.

The MVARA Officers and Directors are:

President – Jay Taft K1EHZ

Vice President – John Yurcak K9AEN

Secretary – Steve Nelson WA1EYF

Membership Secretary – Paul Blais KC1KMM

Treasurer – Ken Geddes N1KWG

Directors

Bill Barber NE1B

Steve Davidson NA1T

Jack Duffy NF1L

Ed Leduc KA1IJN

If you or your club wants to start a mesh network in New England, contact Rob, K1UI at k1ui@nediv.arrl.org, and he’ll put you in touch with those folks who can help.

Greater Bridgeport ARC Annual Picnic and POTA Event, Bethel CT, September 25, 2022

Greater Bridgeport ARC loogoOn September 25, [the Greater Bridgeport Amateur Radio Club] is hosting its annual picnic at Putnam Memorial Park in Bethel, CT. Putnam Memorial Park is a state park so along with conducting our business meeting, we’ll be activating park K-1707. Members, family, and friends are invited.

We will have radios setup for the activation. If you would like to bring yours, you are welcome to. Activating a park is a lot of fun and a great learning opportunity. Those who are unlicensed and wish to operate will have an opportunity to get on the air!

While there are picnic tables, it would be a good idea to bring a chair.

We’ll provide sandwiches from a local deli. Snacks, and water will be provided.

Setup: 11am
Activation: Noon until we wrap up
Meeting: 2pm

Directions:
153 Putnam Park Road
Bethel, CT 06801

Coming from the Fairfield area and Route 15.
Take exit 44 and head north on route 58 (Black Rock Turnpike)
Continue on 58 North for about 12.5 miles and the entrance will be on the right just past the pond.

Putnam Memorial Park is split by route 58 and the signs will lead you to the west side of the park (visitors center and museam), simply continue north for another quarter mile and you’ll see the pond on the right. Attached is a map and entrance photos.

We’ll listen to simplex – 146.52 as it is unlikely you’ll be able to hit our repeater while en route.

We hope to see you there!
– GBARC Officers

“Adventures Celebrating Silent Keys with New Keys”

This weekend the Newport County (RI) Radio Club gathered to begin a new annual tradition celebrating Silent Keys. The inaugural Pete Lawson Outdoor Adventure (PLOA) was a huge success on a beautiful New England fall day at Fort Getty, Jamestown, RI.

The event included a catered picnic lunch, Islands on the Air (IOTA) activation, 4-station Fox Hunt, and CW Key Kit build station. It was funded in part by the sale of Pete’s radio gear and friend donations. This meaningful fun event included recognizing Pete Lawson, W1LAB, with a commemorative brick at the ARRL headquarters and gifting Pete’s widow with a decorative copy of that ARRL tribute marker. A highlight after lunch was seeing all ages gather to build the CW Key kits designed by Willy Maclean, W1LY. Sharing the love of radio across the generations.

Newport Co. RC Pete Lawson Outdoor Adventure
The Newport County Radio Club held its first Pete Lawson Outdoor Adventure at Fort Getty in Jamestown, RI on September 18, 2022 in honor of Silent Key W1LAB. The event included a catered picnic lunch, Islands on the Air (IOTA) activation run by John Mill, K1JSM, 4-station Fox Hunt put together by Jim Sammons, KA1ZOU, and CW Key Kit build station by Willy Maclean, W1LY.

 

Inspiring new keys: CW key kits crafted for the event by Willy Maclean, W1LY.

ARRL Foundation Grants $270,000 to Amateur Radio Clubs

ARRL Foundation logo

From ARRL Club News:

The new ARRL Foundation Club Grant Program, funded by a generous grant from Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC), has awarded $270,000 to radio clubs that participated in the first round of applications.

The Club Grant Program, introduced earlier this year, includes $500,000 to be awarded to radio clubs with projects that will have the most impact on amateur radio, the community, and the future of radio technology. The grants will fund transformative projects that encourage the growth of active amateur radio operators and training opportunities, education programs for student groups and schools, and club revitalization. A second round of applications to award the program’s remaining funding opened on September 7, 2022. The deadline for submitting an application is November 4th at 7PM Eastern time.

Twenty-four clubs were notified on Monday, August 29, that they are receiving grants. The ARRL Foundation received 128 applications in the first round, with requests totaling $1.74 million. The selection committee noted that it was difficult work deciding from many high-quality grant proposals, considering the finite available funds. Radio clubs that did not receive grants in the first round may revise and resubmit applications in the second round.

The ARRL Foundation, established in 1973 by ARRL The National Association for Amateur Radio®, administers the Club Grant Program. ARRL has long recognized that it is in the best interest of amateur radio to encourage and support amateur radio clubs. Clubs historically have recruited, licensed, and trained new radio amateurs and have provided the community setting for them to continue their education and training.

The new Club Grant Program will help clubs more easily provide and expand their important services. More information about the program can be found on the ARRL Foundation website, at www.arrl.org/club-grant-program.

The following clubs, in no particular order, were awarded grants:

Club Name Town State
Heritage High School Amateur Radio Club Brentwood CA
Newport County Radio Club Newport RI
Bristol County Repeater Association Tiverton RI
Holmesburg Amateur Radio Club Philadelphia PA
Quaboag Valley Amateur Radio Club Warren MA
Amateur Radio Club at Kansas State University Manhattan KS
Meriden Amateur Radio Club Wallingford CT
Anchorage Amateur Radio Club Anchorage AK
Andrew Johnson Amateur Radio Club Greeneville TN
Cape Ann Amateur Radio Association Gloucester MA
Yavapai Amateur Radio Club Prescott AZ
Cave City High School Amateur Radio Club Cave City AR
Fauquier County 4-H Ham Radio Club Warrenton VA
All Things Amateur Radio Association Carroll OH
Forsyth Amateur Radio Club Inc Winston Salem NC
Sunset Empire Amateur Radio Club Astoria OR
Barnstable Amateur Radio Club South Dennis MA
Orange County Amateur Radio Club Cornwall NY
Daleville Area Amateur Radio Service Daleville AL
Lake Washington Ham Club Kirkland WA
Radio Association of Western New York West Seneca NY
Prairie Dog Amateur Radio Club Childress TX
West Chester Amateur Radio Association West Chester OH
Gloucester County Amateur Radio Club Pitman NJ

 

Merrimack Valley Amateur Radio Association

Jay Taft K1EHZ writes:

Hello,

I write to introduce a new organization intended to support ARES®-related activities.

ARES® is a program of the ARRL®. It is not an entity that can own property or collect and spend money.

For these reasons many ARES® groups around the country started clubs that can own property and transact business to support ARES® activities.  Hillsborough County and Greater Manchester NH ARES® leaders have formed such a club.

Merrimack Valley Amateur Radio Association, callsign N1MVA, is a New Hampshire nonprofit charitable corporation. We are also applying to the IRS for 501(c)3 status.

Our main goals are

  • enhancing emergency communication infrastructure through fundraising
  • developing operator communication skills by supporting community events.

For example, a current MVARA project is a collaboration with the New England Digital Emergency Communications Network to connect two DMR repeaters with microwave links, as backup for internet connections, making DMR more resilient for emergency communications. This is a pilot project to demonstrate proof-of-concept before applying for funding for a larger deployment.

We also hope to expand the small microwave network among served agencies in Manchester, NH to Nashua and Concord. External funding for this project would also be the subject of an grant proposal.

We seek members interested in these kinds of activities.  Applicants need not be ARES® members nor reside in New Hampshire’s Merrimack Valley Region. ARRL® membership is encouraged so we can become an ARRL® affiliate club.

Those who join MVARA by December 31, 2022 will be designated Charter Members.

The membership application can be found on our website –  MerrimackValleyARA.org.

Questions or comments may be directed to me at k1ehz@arrl.net

73,
Jay K1EHZ

ARRL Foundation Grants $270,000 to Amateur Radio Clubs

From ARRL News:

08/31/2022 – The new ARRL Foundation Club Grant Program, funded by a generous grant from Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC), has awarded $270,000 to radio clubs that participated in the first round of applications.

The Club Grant Program, introduced earlier this year, includes $500,000 to be awarded to radio clubs with projects that will have the most impact on amateur radio, the community, and the future of radio technology. The grants will fund transformative projects that encourage the growth of active amateur radio operators and training opportunities, education programs for student groups and schools, and club revitalization. A second round of applications to award the program’s remaining funding will open on September 7, 2022.

Twenty-four clubs were notified on Monday, August 29, that they are receiving grants. The ARRL Foundation received 128 applications in the first round, with requests totaling $1.74 million. The selection committee noted that it was difficult work deciding from many high-quality grant proposals considering the finite available funds. Radio clubs that did not receive grants in the first round may revise and resubmit applications in the second round.

An informational webinar will serve as an orientation to the program, providing information on how to apply. The webinar will take place on September 7 at 7 PM Eastern Time. Please register in advance to attend. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar:

Webinar: ARRL Club Grant Program | Round Two Kickoff
When: September 7, 2022 at 7 PM Eastern Time
Register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_PezTqPKCTzuwy58FWWgJ3A

The ARRL Foundation, established in 1973 by ARRL  The National Association for Amateur Radio®, administers the Club Grant Program. ARRL has long recognized that it is in the best interests of amateur radio to encourage and support amateur radio clubs. Clubs historically have recruited, licensed, and trained new radio amateurs and have provided the community setting for them to continue their education and training.

The new Club Grant Program will help clubs more easily provide and expand their important services. More information about the program can be found on the ARRL Foundation website at www.arrl.org/club-grant-program.

Newport County Radio Club Experimental Microwave Group Meets

The experimental microwave group of the Newport County (RI) Radio Club (NCRC) gathered to test their AREDN mesh network radios before a site test on Prudence Island in Narragansett Bay.  Two local island women (and club members) recently studied and passed their Technician license specifically to pioneer resilient radio communication on their small island. The NCRC has been experimenting with AREDN (Amateur Radio Emergency Data Network) since 2015, over distances of up to three miles. Today’s gathering was testing the equipment at a local park on 2397 MHz, a super high frequency ham channel below the 2.4GHz WiFi band.

Participants included Paul Fredette, K1YBE; Rob White, KB1ZZU; Mike Cullen, K1NPT; Keith Henry, KC1LPV; and Nancy Austin, KC1NEK. 

K9HI: “HamXposition: It’s Not Your Father’s Boxboro” at Billerica (MA) ARS Meeting, August 3, 2022

Billerica ARS logoFrom https://ema.arrl.org:

Now that you know what it isn’t, come to the next Billerica (MA) ARS meeting and hear what it is from HamXposition Program Chair Phil Temples, K9HI.

Phil will highlight some of the exciting talks and presentations lined up on the three-day program, as well as discussing some of the less-known activities that will occur at the Convention on August 26-28, 2022 at the Best Western Royal Plaza & Trade Center in Marlborough.

(By the way, it’s okay to forget and call it “Boxboro.” Phil does it occasionally, too!)

Phil Temples is ARRL Vice Director for the New England Division and a former Eastern MA Section Manager. A ham for over fifty years, he’s a Life Member of the ARRL and QCWA.

[For Zoom conference details, email Bruce Anderson, W1LUS, at w1lus -at- hotmail -dot- com.]

 

Antenna and Tower Work at Providence Radio Association, W1OP, July 25, 2022

Vic Farmer, NE1Y, writes on the Providence Radio Association Facebook page on July 25 2022:

Between trees growing into the tower guy wires and vines tangling the guys … there was a lot of cleaning up to do at W1OP.

The main attraction this morning at W1OP was to clear out the tree that broke one tip of the longest element on the Log Periodic Dipole Array. All the surrounding land was pretty well cleared when the clubhouse was built in the 1950s, but now it is a forest and jungle with vines. The workers were very careful to make sure the tree did not fall on the clubhouse. Fortunately, [David “Tess” Tessitore,] K1DT, found the broken tip and it will be reattached.