Category: News

FLORIDA SECTIONS AND FLORIDA DIVISION OF EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT HAVE FIRST MEETING AT ORLANDO HAMCATION

On Friday February 13, at the Orlando Hamcation and in the middle of the afternoon, the Section Managers and Section Emergency Coordinators of all three ARRL Florida Sections have their first “sit down” meeting with Phil Royce (who is also KE4PWE), the new Communications Branch Director and Bob Little (who is also KK4OAI) Communications Planner, both from the Florida Division of Emergency Management.

At the meeting, which was held next to the forum rooms at the Hamcation and often humorously interrupted with the sound of a tractor style forklift working nearby, the first agreements were made as to how the State of Florida Emergency Operations Center will interface simultaneously with all three Florida Sections and all 67 County Emergency Operations Center.  The meeting lasted for over an hour and future meetings and less formal gatherings are planned.

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WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA SECTION QSO PARTY – INITIAL ANNOUNCEMENT

The ARRL West Central Florida Section is celebrating its 15th birthday by holding a West Central Florida Section QSO Party.  With the ARRL Centennial QSO Party being so well received last year, our Section Staff has decided to hold our own Section QSO Party this year to celebrate the Section’s 15th birthday.
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The QSO Party will run from 0000 hours (12:00 A.M) April 1, 2015  through 2359 hours (11:59 P.M) June 26, 2015, the day before ARRL Field Day.  There will be several categories of entry as well as a tier of points that may be achieved.  The full list of contest rules will be published around the first days of March.  Also there are plans to have at least one K4WCF Portable operation in each of the ten counties of the West Central Florida Section.

If your club, group, or ARES or ACS organization is interested in putting on K4WCF Portable for the West Central Florida Section QSO Party in your county, please fill out the Contact and Information Form and send us the following information:  (1) Name of your club, group, or ARES/ACS organization, (2) Contact information for your operation, and (3) Desired date(s) of operation of K4WCF.  K4WCF Portable operations are not limited to just one per county, and it would be desirable to have at least two K4WCF operations per county to give folks opportunity to work the K4WCF operations in each county at least once.

Makes plans now to come and join the West Central Florida Section QSO Party.

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BRIEF BIOGRAPHY – BEN HENLEY KI4IGX – ASSISTANT SECTION MANAGER AND SECTION EMERGENCY COORDINATOR

Ben is a native of Florida, born on the east coast of Florida but grew up in Highlands County and graduated from Sebring High School in 1987.  Ben has always enjoyed Public Service and started off right after high school doing duty as a volunteer fire fighter in Highlands County, while working for Florida Hospital in Information Technology.  Ben started working for Highlands County Emergency Management in 1998 and has been in his current position of Emergency Management Coordinator since 2000.  Ben also has been over Communications and the 911 department of Highlands County.  Ben also has been a two way radio bench technician for an E.F. Johnson dealer.

Ben was first licensed in 2005 as Technician and recently upgraded to General class.  Ben became an Assistant Section Emergency Coordinator in 2009, followed by becoming an Assistant Section Manager in late 2014, followed by becoming Section Emergency Coordinator in 2015.

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SECTION MANAGER AND ASSISTANT SECTION MANAGER ATTEND THE MIAMI HAMBOREE ON 1/30/15 AND 1/31/15

On Friday January 30th and Saturday January 31st, Darrell Davis KT4WX, Section Manager, and Ben Henley KI4IGX, Assistant Section Manager, traveled to West Miami to attend the Miami Hamboree as representatives of the West Central Florida Section.

Darrell and Ben, spent a significant amount of time helping out Jeff Beals WA4AW, Section Manager of the Southern Florida Section, with the ARRL table and enjoyed attending the ARRL forum on Saturday and hearing about the various activities of the Southern Florida Section.  Darrell and Ben also were able to have dinner on Friday and Saturday evening with Jeff Beals WA4AW and some of his Section Staff.  The hamfest was enjoyed by all who attended.

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SECTION OFFICIALS VISIT DESOTO COUNTY HAMFESTS AND TWO SPAR WINTER FIELD DAY SITES ON 1/24/15

On Saturday January 24th, Darrell Davis KT4WX (Section Manager), Ben Henley KI4IGX (Assistant Section Manager and Section Emergency Coordinator), and Randy Payne K4EZM (Assistant Section Manager and Assistant Section Emergency Coordinator) went on a day long caravan to visit one hamfest and two SPAR Winter Field Day sites.

 

First stop was from 0700 (7:00 A.M.) until 1200 (12:00 A.M.) at the Desoto Hamfest at the Turner Agri-Civic Center in Arcadia.  Turnout was smaller than desired due to a squall line along a cold front that came through in the early morning hours but fun and good fellowship was had by all that attended.  Had a number of visitors stop by the ARRL table.

 

SPAR (Society for the Preservation of Amateur Radio) sponsors an annual Winter Field Day each year and this year it was on the same day as the Desoto County Hamfest.  So after leaving the hamfest and stopping briefly for lunch, the caravan went over to the Sarasota Amateur Radio Association (SARA) SPAR Winter Field Day on the east side of Sarasota just off of I-75.  The folks at SARA made the caravan feel welcome and right at home.  Thanks to Les Keegan N4LPK, President of SARA, for the invitation to stop by and for being an excellent host.

After leaving Sarasota, the caravan made its final stop of the day with the folks from Manatee County ARES that had setup a SPAR Winter Field Day at Camp Flying Eagle.  Thanks to Ed Skalecki NI4MX, Emergency Coordinator for Manatee County ARES and his team for the invitation to stop by for also being an excellent host.

 

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SECTION YOUTH ACTIVITIES UPDATE BY CHRISTINE DUEZ KK4KJN – SECTION YOUTH COORDINATOR

As the West Central Youth Coordinator I have been busy during January. I have 300 pieces of promotional information aimed at getting children and teens involved in amateur radio.  During February I am planning to visit clubs in the WCF district to recruit adults. Interest in “wireless devices” is high among the youth of today.  How can you help ensure that amateur radio remains strong and is passed on to the next generation?  All it takes is your knowledge, patience, and time.

Here are a few suggestions for you to use.  Do you know any children/teens that are interested?  The Youth Coordinator page has information on fun activities and test study guides to get them started.

You can approach a group, Boy or Girl Scouts are a good choice.  Tell them about the badges they can earn and the JOTA:  http://www.scouting.org/jota.aspx

If you want to work with a school, here is the procedure in Polk County. It may vary slightly in other counties, but this is a basic plan:

1. Fill out a volunteer form at the school of your choice
2. Be fingerprinted and approved before the school will allow you to work with their students
3. Obtain a school sponsor who will attend all meetings.

Start with #3. Who would be a good choice for the school sponsor? I would suggest a science or math teacher. You can also talk with the Honor Society sponsors, the JROTC/ROTC programs or the STEM program teachers.  They can give you information about specific requirements for starting a club or program at their school. You can also offer community service hours for field days. Most high schools require students to do community service to graduate.  Ask to post a few posters in the schools and invite students to visit your meetings or a field day.

Ham radio is great for kids with physical challenges too. It affords them a level field with the other students.  If you know someone who could benefit from special accommodations, check out this site: http://www.handiham.org/drupal2/.

KI4VOS is working on a PowerPoint presentation for schools and KI4FDR is working on a presentation for students that might need special accommodations.  If you have any ideas or are interested in working with children/teens contact me at KK4KJN@arrl.net. I will be happy provide any support or assistance possible.

73, Christine – KK4KJN

 

END OF PRESS RELEASE

The following information was received from Phil Clark KM4DPV, an Assistant E.C. for Pasco County ARES and he requested that we disseminate this information on the Section website.  Here it is:

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The Pasco Wednesday night ARES/RACES net will alternate between several repeaters.  Please click here for the latest Pasco County ARES/RACES Net Frequency and Net Control List.  May be updated again soon.

 

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The Pasco Wednesday night ARES/RACES on-air net will, beginning

in February, offer on-air training for ARES/RACES members.

Stations checking into the net please have the following items

ready:

1. A writing pad
2. A pencil
3. A blank RADIOGRAM form

You can obtain a RADIOGRAM form from the ARRL website:

1. Browse to “www.arrl.org“.
2. In the upper-right corner of the screen, you will see a “Search box”.
3. Enter the keyword, “RADIOGRAM” and click the “GO” button.
4. On the next screen, the first article will have a title of “ARRL Radiogram”.
5. Download that file to your computer and print a copy.

Our initial training will be practice at copying a formal written message.

We will add other topics, probably in the form of roundtable discussions, later.

 

Phil, KM4DPV, Pasco AEC

THE PRESSER: ARRL WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA SECTION NEWS

Issue #2 – February 2015

By Darrell Davis KT4WX

ARRL West Central Florida Section Manager

(NOTE: This newsletter with hyperlinks included is located online at http://www.arrl.org/Groups/view/west-central-florida)

NEW ASSISTANT SECTION MANAGER APPOINTED – RANDY PAYNE K4EZM:

On Monday January 25^th, Randy Payne K4EZM was appointed to be an Assistant Section Manager for Administration for the West Central Florida. Randy will be assisting me with Administrative duties of the Section. For the full press release go to http://arrlwcf.org/news/2015/01/29/wcf-section-press-release-6-12615/.

THE FIRST ANNUAL WEST CENTRAL FLORIDA SECTION TECHNICAL CONFERENCE:

The First Annual West Central Florida Section Technical Conference will be held on Saturday April 4, 2015 from 9:00 A.M. until 5:00 P.M. at the Bert J. Harris Jr. Agri-Civic Center, 4905 George Blvd, Sebring. Welcome and last minute registration will begin at 8:15 A.M. If you are planning on attending, please go to the WCF Section Technical Conference Registration Page at http://arrlwcf.org/wcf-special-events/wcftechconference/ and fill out the online registration form. You will receive an online and email confirmation of your successful registration. There you can also download the conference flyer, and look WCF Section Technical Conference Event Page on the WCF Section Events Calendar, which has a Google Map showing the location of the Agri-Civic Center. The direct link to the Section Calendar Event Page for the WCF Section Technical Conference is at http://www.arrlwcf.org/event/first-annual-arrl-wcf-section-technical-conference/.

We are still looking for more speakers. If you have an area of expertise in any area of amateur radio or amateur radio related technology consider being on of our speakers. Having a PowerPoint slide show and or PDF handouts is a great addition but not required if you wish to speak. We will have a section on our website for PDF handouts and or PowerPoint presentations that will go live when the conference begins, so those who attend the conference will be able to view and or download these materials on their tables and or smart-phones for viewing during the presentations.

The conference schedule will be finalized in mid March and the conference schedule will be published on the Section website mid to late March. We will have hourly door prizes and several door prizes at the end of the day. You must be present to win one of the door prizes. Also we will have a guest speaker for one of the conference slots from ARRL Headquarters. Anyone from inside or outside of the Section is welcome to attend or be a speaker af the conference.

WCF SECTION 15TH BIRTHDAY QSO PARTY:

The ARRL West Central Florida Section turned 15 years old on January 15, 2015. It seemed appropriate that we celebrate the 15^th birthday of the Section. The WCF Section QSO Party will be held from April 1, 2015 until June 30, 2015. We will have the complete WCF Section QSO Party rules published during February on the Section website. All modes and frequencies, including repeaters will be allowed. This will allow many of our new hams who do not as of yet have HF privileges to get on and make contacts for the QSO Party. Also we are planning to have K4WCF portable operations at least once in each of ten counties of the WCF Section. If your club or group is interested in running K4WCF for a day in your county, please fill out the Contact Form on the Section website at http://arrlwcf.org/contact-info/.

STATION APPOINTEES PLEASE REAPPLY:

To those of you who have re-applied for your various ARRL Station Appointments, thank you very much. If you have been serving as an ARRL Station Appointee (Emergency Coordinator, Official Relay Station, Net Manager, Official Emergency Station, Official Observer, Local Government Liaison, Technical Specialist) and have not reapplied, please go to our newly redesigned Section website and reapply on the Online Station Appointment Form at http://www.arrlwcf.org/wcf-section-programs-2/station-appointee-application-form/ in the Section Program tab to continue your appointment. This allows us to know who is interested in continuing to serve as an ARRL Station Appointee and who is no longer active. Please be sure to do so by the end of this month.

STATION APPOINTEE MONTHLY REPORTS:

Also if you are serving in one of these appointments, please be sure to file a monthly report by the 5^th day of the month following the month being reported. For example for the month of January, your report would be due by February 5^th. This can be simply an email to the Cabinet member that is the coordinator over your Station Appointment or myself, telling us what you did last month or anything you feel is worth including. No particular format is necessary. Even if you were not active for that month, simply put something like, “No activity for this month to report”. Regular reporting is an ARRL requirement to hold an ARRL Station Appointment.

ARRL Emergency Coordinators you now a report form for you to use on the Section website at http://arrlwcf.org/section-forms/emergency-coordinators-monthly-report-form/. We will have online Report forms for the other Station Appointees by the end of the month available for your reports. Time was not available to finish the forms for the other Station Appointees.

SECTION CALENDAR – CALL FOR YOUR CLUB MEETING, RADIO NETS, AND REPEATER INFORMATION:

To those who have already sent us their club meeting information, thank you for sending in that information. If you are contact for your radio club or group, please help us getting out your club meeting, radio net, and repeater information in the right places on our Section website by filling out a Contact Form at http://arrlwcf.org/contact-info/. You will receive an online and email confirmation of what you submitted. Then we can compile this information and put it on the Section website in the appropriate places.

UPCOMING HAMFESTS IN THE SECTION-FORMS

We have the following hamfest coming up in the Section for the month of February:

• Saturday February 13-15: Orlando Hamcation: Central Florida Fairgrounds, Orlando.
• Saturday February 21: Highlands County Hamfest: Lake Josephine Baptist Church, between Sebring and Lake Placid.

For more information on hamfests and events in the Section , please visit our website Section Calendar at http://www.arrlwcf.org/events for more information.

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE MONTH OF JANUARY:

January was a busy month for your Section Manager and staff. On Saturday January 10^th, the first quarterly WCF Section Cabinet and WCF Section ARES meeting was held in the morning and afternoon respectively at the Highlands County EOC. On Saturday January 17^th, I attended TARCFest #32 at the Tampa Amateur Radio Clubhouse on the north side of Tampa. The Tampa Amateur Radio Club is blessed with a nice clubhouse and club station. On Saturday January 24, Ben Henley KI4IGX (ASM and SEC), Randy Payne K4EZM (ASM and ASEC) and I attended the Desoto County Hamfest, then paid a visit two SPAR Winter Field Day sites. One of these was with the Sarasota Amateur Radio Association held at a Baptist Church on Palmer Blvd in Sarasota, and the other was put on by the Manatee County ARES near Lakewood Ranch. On Friday January 30^th and Saturday January 31^st, Ben Henley KI4IGX and I carpooled together to the Miami Hamboree at the Dade County Youth Fairgrounds in West Miami, to represent the West Central Florida Section. Jeff Beals WA4AW (SM SFL) and his team made us feel welcome and right at home.

SECTION TRAFFIC REPORT:

Starting in the next issue of THE PRESSER we will include the monthly Section Traffic report. Doug N2DW always does a great job with generating these monthly reports and is changing the format so it can be included in THE PRESSER. Thanks Doug for your dedicated labor.

SECTION MANAGERS CONTACT INFORMATION:

Here is my contact information. Much of this is listed now on Page 16 of QST.

• U.S. Mail: 6350 Mills Road Fort Meade, FL 33841

• Telephone: (863) 245-9923

• Email: kt4wx@arrl.org

• Website: http://www.kt4wx.org.

That is all for this issue of THE PRESSER. See you all here next month. Hopefully I will get to see many of you at a meeting, hamfest, or talk to you on the air.

73 de Darrell KT4WX

 

SECTION MANAGER VISITS TARCFEST XXXII ON JANUARY 17TH

Your Section Manager and his staff have been busy lately.  On Saturday January 17th Darrell Davis KT4WX paid a visit, and presented the ARRL table, at the first TARCFest XXXII, the first TARCFest for 2015.  This is a great tailgate put on by the friendly hams at the Tampa Amateur Radio Club (TARC) located at their clubhouse on North 22nd Street in Tampa, that occurs three times a year.

This club is one of the few in the section that have their own clubhouse and club station.  TARC, as they are called, is one of the oldest clubs in the West Central Florida Section and operate several repeaters in Tampa.

TARCFest XXXIII will be held on Saturday April 18, 2015.  For more information on the Tampa Amateur Radio Club (TARC) or the TARCFest you may visit their website at http://www.hamclub.org

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RANDY PAYNE K4EZM APPOINTED AS AN ASSISTANT SECTION MANAGER – ADMINISTRATION

Darrell Davis KT4WX has appointed Randy Payne K4EZM as a new Assistant Section Manager.  Randy has been serving as Emergency Coordinator for Highlands County ARES since 2005 and new appointed ARRL Assistant Section Emergency Coordinator for Administration, and also an ARRL Technical Specialist.  Randy is joining the Section Cabinet to assist Darrell with various administrative duties.

Randy has been a licensed amateur radio operator and an ARRL member since the 1960’s, and has lived much of his life in Highlands County.  Randy has served previously by pastoring several churches, also working as a college professor, and in his last job was a librarian at South Florida State College library, and is now retired.  In addition to amateur radio, Randy still serves in the church ministry in several capacities and makes time to still go fishing, his other life long hobby.

END OF PRESS RELEASE