Category: News

WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA SECTION NET DATE AND TIME CHANGE – TUESDAY AT 1900 INSTEAD OF 1930

The West Central Florida Section Information Net will be moving to a new date and time slot, effective on Friday May 1, 2015.  Starting in the month of May, the West Central Florida Section Information Net on the NI4CE Repeater System will be moving to Tuesday evening at 1900 (7:00 P.M.), in order to increase attendance and reach more amateur radio operators with Section news and information.  Originally the net was going to be at 1930 (7:30 P.M.), but the net will instead be held at 1900 (7:00 P.M.) in order to accommodate numerous local ARES and club nets held during the 1930 time slot.

The West Central Florida Section Information and ARES Net on 3911 KHz (or 3913 KHz if 3911 is busy) will be staying in its slot on Saturday at 0830 (8:30 A.M.).  Only the net on the NI4CE Repeater System will be moving to a new date and time slot.

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FIRST ANNUAL WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA SECTION TECHNICAL CONFERENCE – AN OUTSTANDING SUCCESS

The First Annual West Central Florida Section Technical Conference was held on Saturday April 4, 2015 at the Bert J. Harris Agri-Civic Center in Sebring (Highlands County).  According to Geoff Haines N1GY, West Central Florida Section Technical Coordinator, the conference was “an outstanding success”.

The following gave presentations at the conference:  Bob Allison WB1GCM, ARRL Laboratory, Geoff Haines N1GY, West Central Florida Section Technical Coordinator, Darrell Davis KT4WX, Section Manager and Technical Specialist, Ben Henley KI4IGX, Assistant Section Manager and Technical Specialist, Larry Lazar KS4NB, and John Chaput KK4LI.

The conference had 42 registered via the Section website and 43 that checked in to the conference.  At one point an unofficial head count showed 48 in attendance.  The conference was well received by all who attended and everyone is looking forward to attending next year.   The Second Annual West Central Florida Section Technical Conference will be held in early 2016 and will be in either Hillsborough or Pinellas County. Many of our speakers are tentatively slated to return next year including Bob Allison WB1GCM, with new presentations.  As soon as the date, time, and location are determined, that information will be published on the Section website and announced in a WCF SECTION PRESS RELEASE.

SECTION MANAGER VISITS TWO HAMFESTS IN PASCO COUNTY IN MARCH

Your Section Manager paid a visit to two hamfests in Pasco County in the month of March.

On Saturday March 7, Darrell Davis KT4WX, facilitated the ARRL table at the ZAARC (Zephryhills Area Amateur Radio Club) and EPARS (East Pasco Amateur Radio Society) combined hamfest at the Zephyrhills Lions Club in Zephyrhills.  The hamfest was well attended, had a good tailgate area in the back of the building, and Darrell was warmly received by those who sponsored and attended.

On Saturday March 28, Darrell Davis KT4WX, attended and facilitated the ARRL table, which was on the trunk of Darrell’s “classic” 1989 Ford Thunderbird, at the Gulf Coast Hamfest sponsored the Gulf Coast Amateur Radio Club.  This hamfest was an exclusive tailgate all outdoors.  The location and weather were just great for the hamfest, being a cold front with a lot of rain had passed over the Section the day before.   Darrell was late getting to the hamfest, due to a flat tire on his car, but enjoyed the warm reception he received after his arrival and got to meet and talk with many in the Gulf Coast Amateur Radio Club.

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WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA SECTION INFORMATION NET ON THE NI4CE REPEATER SYSTEM TO MOVE DAYS

Effective on Friday May 1, 2015, the West Central Florida Section Information Net on the NI4CE Repeater System will be moving from Sunday evening at 1930 (7:30 P.M.) to Tuesday evening at 1930 (7:30 P.M.).  This move is to increase the attendance of the net.  Sunday evening is often a time that many spend time with their families and or church services.

The last Sunday evening net will be on Sunday April 26, 2015.  The first Tuesday evening net will be on Tuesday May 5th.  All other Section Nets on the NI4CE Repeater System will remain in their current date and times.  The Section ARES and Information Net that meets on 3911 KHz (or 3913 KHz) Saturday at 0830 (8:30 A.M.) will remain in its date and time as well.

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WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA SECTION FIELD DAY CARAVAN TO TAKE TO THE ROAD ONCE AGAIN

On June 27 and 28, 2015, will be one of the most popular operating events of the year:  ARRL Field Day.  Again this year your ARRL West Central Florida Section Leadership will be taking to the road for the 15th consecutive West Central Florida Section Field Day Caravan.  However this year you will see different people on the caravan.  This year Darrell Davis KT4WX our new Section Manager, and Ben Henley KI4IGX our new Section Emergency Coordinator, will be doing the Field Day caravan.

The tentative itinerary will be as follows:  The Field Day Caravan will start out in Pasco County and go south through the coastal counties of Pasco, Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee, Sarasota, and Charlotte Counties.  Then turn north after visiting the sites in Charlotte County and follow the U.S. 17 corridor up through Desoto, Hardee County, and into Polk County,  Then turn southeast and end in Highlands County.  This itinerary is due to the fact that Ben and Darrell live in southern Polk and Highlands Counties respectively.

Be sure to register your ARRL Field Day site at http://www.arrl.org/field-day-locator.  Please register by May 23, 2015 as we will pull the list of ARRL Field Day site registrations for the West Central Florida Section so we can plan a detailed travel itinerary and get to see all the Field Day sites in the Section.  For general ARRL Field Day information including rules and logging go to http://www.arrl.org/field-day.

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PASCO COUNTY ARES WEBSITE DEBUTS

Earlier this week Pasco County ARES debuted a new website.  It has the Pasco County ARES Weekly Net schedule and other information about the ARES program in Pasco County.  Go to http://www.pascoares.org to check out their new website.

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WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA SECTION QSO PARTY BEGINS TOMORROW – LOG SHEETS HAVE BEEN REVISED

Starting tomorrow, Wednesday April 15, 2015, the West Central Florida Section QSO Party will begin.  In response to some suggestions, the Excel and Word versions of the official log sheets have been revised for clarity and improved usage.

They are available on the WCF QSO Party page on the Section website at http://arrlwcf.org/wcf-special-events/west-central-florida-section-qso-party/.  Be sure to download and use these new log sheets for clarity.  Thank you for your understanding.

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JOHN HAMILTON KE4UNO AND BART HOUSER AF4TK BECOME SILENT KEYS

It is with sadness that we have to report to you that two amateur radio operators have recently become silent keys:

JOHN HAMILTON KE4UNO SK:

John Hamilton KE4UNO, of Lakeland, became a silent key on Sunday March 8, 2015, after a short period of illness. He was 52 years old.  He is survived by his father Bart T. Hamilton; sister Donna Haynes (Jody) of Lakeland; and nieces Kelly Cici, and Megan Haynes.

John was well known and often frequented the local 2 Meter and 70 Centimeter repeaters in Polk County, the Wauchula repeater in Hardee County, and Hillsborough County.  A memorial service was held on Thursday March 12 at the Hopewell Funeral Home on CR39 south of Plant City.

The Ledger Obituary: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/theledger/obituary.aspx?n=john-w-hamilton&pid=174368528&fhid=3691#sthash.arJ1zkhK.dpuf

Lakeland Amateur Radio Club Blog: http://lakelandarc.blogspot.com/2015/03/ke4uno-becomes-silent-key.html

BARTON “BART” HOUSER AF4TK SK:

Bart Houser AF4TK, of Tampa, became a silent key on Thursday April 9, 2015. He was 71 years old.

Tampa Amateur Radio Club Website: http://hamclub.org/wp/?p=975

Please note:  Silent Key notices are not published in a WCF SECTION PRESS RELEASE until the publishing of an obituary to give the families involved privacy and to prevent the error of reporting someone a silent key who is in fact alive and well.  Thank you for your understanding.

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WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA ARES SECTION MEETING AND SIMULATED EMERGENCY TEST BOTH POSTPONED.

Due to the funeral of Warren Elly W1GUD being held on Saturday April 11 and in consultation with our hosts at the Hillsborough County EOC, the West Central Florida Section ARES Meeting has been postponed for one week until Saturday April 18th.  Tentatively, the meeting will be held at the Hardee County EOC at 404 W. Orange Street in downtown Wauchula, right across from the Hardee County Courthouse.  The meeting time will still be at 1:00 P.M. and the West Central Florida Section ARES Luncheon will be held at the Panda Restaurant located at 806 South 6th Avenue, Wauchula.  South 6th Avenue is also southbound U.S. 17.  For the Section ARES Luncheon Info go to http://arrlwcf.org/event/wcf-section-ares-meeting-3/ and the Section ARES Luncheon go to http://arrlwcf.org/event/wcf-section-ares-meeting-3/.

The West Central Florida Section Simulated Emergency Test (SET) has been postponed until a later date in the Spring or Summer of 2015, until such a time can be determined to hold the SET.

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WARREN ELLY W1GUD BECOMES A SILENT KEY

Yesterday Warren Elly W1GUD, became a silent key losing his battle with adrenal cancer.  Warren was originally from New England but came to Florida in the 1980’s and had been a licensed amateur radio operator for over 50 years.

Warren had served as the trustee of the W4DUG call sign for the Tampa Amateur Radio Club (TARC) and had served TARC through the many years from the days (when their clubhouse was) on Davis Islands until his passing.  He was the driving force behind the Field Day success of placing 2nd nationwide and spearheaded the antenna project at the clubhouse that brought the TARC Clubhouse that portion of their remarkable facility.  Warren was a regular Net Control Station on the South Coast Amateur Radio Service (SCARS) Net on 7251 KHz.  He was an avid fan of AM broadcasting, especially with his favored boat anchor equipment, yet he was in the forefront of innovation recently acquiring a Flex software defined radio.

Warren was very well known to the public as a news reporter for WTVT Channel 13 news from 1982 until his retirement in 2011.  Warren never retired from one of his main hobbies: amateur radio.  Warren was an inspiration to all that knew him and he will be truly missed.  Warren is survived by his wife Lona, his sons, and grandchildren.

Content of this press release and photo are courtesy of the Tampa Amateur Radio Club and WTVT websites.

For more information go to http://hamclub.org/index4.html and http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/story/28730452/remembering-warren-elly-a-colleague-mentor-and-friend.

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