Greater Bridgeport (CT) ARC Combined SET, JOTA & POTA for Fun-Filled Weekend

Greater Bridgeport ARC loogo

Members of the Greater Bridgeport Amateur Radio Club combined the best of a Simulated Emergency Test (SET), Jamboree On The Air (JOTA), and Parks On The Air (POTA), while operating from three state parks on October 16, 2021: 

  • Sherwood Island SP (Park K-1715)
  • Silver Sands SP (Park K-1716)
  • West Rock SP (Park K-1727) (2 stations)

“Our goal [was] to provide community outreach for ham radio, and to help train our new operators,” explained GBARC president Emily Clarke, N1DID.   

During the POTA Event the groups also participated in the CT ARES SET using simplex VHF/UHF as well as DMR.

“I wanted to do the SET from a distance away from our ARES region (Region 1)  so we could simulate simplex communications outside our region.   I was in Region 2, and all our other stations were in CT State Parks in Region 1 or were mobile enroute.  After the SET we turned our attention to our main reason for being in the park, our POTA event,” says Clarke.
 
According to N1DID, the JOTA contact wasn’t actually planned. 
 
“We were doing HF communications for POTA when a huge troop of Scouts walked by.  We asked, ‘Does anyone want to learn about ham radio?’ and they all ran and formed a very disciplined semi-circle around us.  I gave them an explanation about HF communications, then gave a short talk explaining how we and other radio amateurs were active on the air promoting our beautiful state parks.”
 
“We gave additional information about emergency communications. how parents and even scouts can get their technician licenses, and about how they can reach out to local clubs for help with their radio merit badge.  
 
Clarke and her group took  questions from the kids and parents and got a big thank you.  Clarke encouraged them to reach out to the club in the future. “Afterwards the Scout leader came up and took my email address and said ‘I always wanted to do this.’”
 
Although N1DID and the other GBARC members got to interact with the public at the other parks “The 40+ Scouts and parents we met  was the icing on the cake of a wonderful day in the park.”
 
Scouts at GBARC POTA event
Scouts visiting Greater Bridgeport ARC Parks On The Air event

New England Sci-Tech ARS Crew to Participate in JOTA, Lexington (MA), October 16, 2021

JOTA-JOTI logoTate Aldridge, K1MKD, writes:

With Bruce [N9JBT], Mindy [KM1NDY], and Marc’s help (and flyers from Rusty and Bob), we are hosting a Jamboree On The Air for scouts in Lexington. We will have several radios out and will be making contacts and educating scouts about amateur radio. We would be very happy to see you there!

https://www.jotajoti.info/
Lexington Visitor Center lawn, Lexington, MA
Saturday Oct 16
Scouts are coming from 1-4 and we start set up around 11 – STARS friends are welcome any time!

73,
Tate, K1MKD

Jamboree On The Air Operation, Enfield, NH, October 15-17, 2021

JOTA-JOTI logoRay Chaffee, WA1ORT, writes on the Twin State Radio Club mailing list:

I am looking for operators for the weekend.  I plan on operations starting on Friday at 7:00 PM until Sunday at 10 AM. Operations subject to band openings.

I hope to have at least 3 HF and DMR stations. I would like to do a fox hunt on Saturday if I have enough help.

We will be at La Salette on Route 4A in Enfield, NH.

Ray WA1ORT

Jamboree On The Air, October 15-17, 2021

JOTA-JOTI logoFrom the JOTA-JOTI website:

JOTA-JOTI (Jamboree-on-the-Air-Jamboree-on-the-Internet) is the world’s largest digital Scout event taking place on October 15-17, 2021, on the Internet and over the airwaves. Held every year in October, the event connects millions of young people around the world for a full weekend of online activities that promote friendship and global citizenship. JOTA-JOTI enables young people and volunteers to participate in fun and engaging group activities over the Internet and amateur radio focused on developing 21st century skills through Scouting. 

JOTA-JOTI 2020 took place from 15 to 17 October. The dynamic program comprised a variety of non-formal education activities, including webinars, global campfires, talent shows, live shows, fun challenges and more through an interactive 3D campsite. JOTA-JOTI aims to support young people of all ages to learn about communications technology, the values of global citizenship, and their role in creating a better world.

 

ARRL Youth Activities

Fred Hopengarten, K1VR, writes on the ARRL Members Only mailing list:

While on tour visiting 11 Field Day sites in MA and CT, and last weekend in Maine at Lobstercon (this means you Dennis, K1LGQ – the last president of the Nashua Amateur Radio Club), I heard from several people that the ARRL should do things to encourage youth interest in ham radio.

The question tells me that ARRL has not done a good job at communicating some of the things ARRL does NOW. For example, ARRL’s Teachers Institute on Wireless Technology is being offered this week, the week of July 12, 2021. It is a combination of live and recorded sessions, providing instructions for schoolteachers on a variety of activities related to wireless technology and amateur radio. These activities provide practical lessons that teachers can use in their classrooms. There are 18 scheduled sessions. See http://www.arrl.org/files/file/Teachers%20Institute/TI_2021_Program_v2.pdf.

Cost: Teachers Institute opportunities are virtually free for the participants. The grant to attend a TI covers transportation, hotel, a modest per-diem to cover meals, instructional resources for the electronics, microcontroller, and robotics segments of the course, and a resource library of relevant ARRL publications. There is only a $100 enrollment fee to attend Teachers Institute.

For further information, see http://www.arrl.org/teachers-institute-on-wireless-technology.

If you know of a licensed teacher in New England who should attend next year’s session, please let me know. I’ll pay that teacher’s enrollment fee.

Furthermore, and reflecting a concern related to me earlier this year by Mitch Stern, W1SJ (VT), this Thursday, the ARRL Board Committee on Administration & Finance will consider a League program to pay first time license fees (when those $35 fees become effective later this year) for those under age 18. The CEO will report to the Board on the financial impact of such a decision. If you have thoughts on this program, please let me know.

——————————————————————–
ARRL New England Division
Director: Fred Hopengarten, K1VR
k1vr@arrl.org
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Nashua Area Radio Society Holds On-line Technician Class for High Schoolers in NH, PA

Zoom window showing Nashua Area Radio Society Tech ClassFrom the Nashua Area Radio Society website:

“On the weekend of May 22nd and 23rd, the Nashua Area Radio Society held a Technician License Class for students from Bishop Guertin High School in Nashua, NH, and from Council Rock High School South in Holland, PA.  Both schools recently had contacts with the ISS.  The Bishop-Guertin High School ISS contact was held earlier this year in February.  and the Council Rock High School South ISS contact was in December 2019.” [Full story]

 

KC1PEN, Scouts On The Air Event, Near New Haven, CT, Suggestions Requested

North Haven, CT vicinityDavid Henry, KC1PEN, writes on May 20, 2021 on the Meriden Amateur Radio Club Facebook page:
 
I’m planning to do a Scouts-On-The-Air event with a local cub pack during their upcoming camping trip. I’ll have VHF/UHF FM voice and DMR capability at the location and am planning a DMR private call (I think I have a volunteer for that) and then a CQ call on DMR North America or WW English to try to get a distant contact for the Scouts to interact with.
 
Any thoughts or suggestions?
 
~KC1PEN~

ARRL Board Considers Plan to Cover New $35 FCC Fee for Some Young Members

ARRL logoAt its Annual Meeting in January, the ARRL Board of Directors considered a motion to offer a new plan that would pay the new but not-yet-implemented $35 FCC application fee for a limited number of new radio amateurs younger than age 18 who, at the time of testing, belonged to an ARRL Affiliated 501(c)(3) charitable organization and passed their tests through an ARRL VEC-sponsored exam session. The proposal called for reducing the VEC fee for these candidates to $5. The initial proposal came from ARRL Southeastern Division Director Mickey Baker, N4MB. Other Board members offered subsidiary motions. Supporters said the purpose behind the motion was to ameliorate the potential financial hardship the pending FCC application fee posed on certain minors applying for their first license, and to encourage new youth membership. [Full story]

 

It’s Time for School Roundup, February, 2021 Edition

School Roundup logoSchool Club Roundup (SCR) comes but twice a year, in February and October, and the February edition is upon us. The 5-day event runs from Monday, February 8 at 1300 UTC to Friday, February 12 at 2359 UTC. Any mode — SSB, CW, or digital — is allowed for the event, but only digital modes that support the full exchange of required contact information are permitted. [Full story]