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ARRL Club News

Published by the American Radio Relay League
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January 16, 2024

Editor: Michael Walters, W8ZY <clubs@arrl.org>

IN THIS ISSUE

- Wreaths Across America via Ham Radio
- Winter Field Day
- Texas Club Uses ARRL Grant to Work with Scouts
- New ARRL Award Certificates
- Write for Club Station
- Submitting Info for this Newsletter
- How to Plan and Apply for an ARRL Hamfest or Convention
- Important Links

==> WREATHS ACROSS AMERICA VIA HAM RADIO

As Christmas wreaths were placed upon thousands of veterans' graves at
Arlington National Cemetery and other veteran cemeteries across the
nation by Wreaths Across America (WAA) on December 16, Maine Ham Radio
Society (MHRS) members were living up to the WAA motto -- Remember,
Honor, and Teach -- during their special event on the HF bands.

MHRS is an ARRL Special Service Club and honors the staff and
volunteers who provide this moving tribute to America's fallen soldiers
each December. The club was issued the call sign W1A for the special
event and made 348 contacts. MHRS Vice President Bob Ustruck, KF5CFU,
took part in the event and said that the response on the air was
overwhelming.

"I had a pileup pretty much the whole time that I operated as W1A, and
everyone was grateful that we were supporting Wreaths Across America,"
said Ustruck.

Several hams who contacted W1A, including Don Kocsis, WA8TWM, in
Painesville, Ohio, noted that they were also participating in wreath
ceremonies at their local veterans' cemeteries. MHRS President Phil
Duggan, N1EP, said one ham on the HF bands was looking forward to
receiving the QSL card so he could give it to a Gold Star mother.

Maurry Mills, W1FWS, operated the event for the second year in a row.
"Many of the operators I contacted were already aware of Wreaths Across
America, and all were thankful for our special event operation," he
said.

Brenda Duggan, N1ZPV, was thrilled to participate. Her late father,
Harold West, served under General George S. Patton in WWII and was
wounded during combat.

The majority of the contacts were made on 20-, 40-, and 80-meter bands,
although club members called CQ on most of the non-WARC bands. The
Maine Ham Radio Society plans to continue this annual tribute every
December for the near future.

By Phil Duggan, N1EP

==> WINTER FIELD DAY

Each January, many clubs get together to challenge the elements during
Winter Field Day (WFD). This year's event is on January 27 and 28.
Winter Field Day is sponsored by the Winter Field Day Association, who
passionately believes that ham radio operators should practice portable
emergency communications in winter environments, as the potential for
freezing temperatures, snow, ice, and other hazards present unique
operating concerns. WFD is formatted to help increase your level of
preparedness for disasters and to improve your operating skills in
subpar conditions. Maybe your club wants to brave the elements and
operate outdoors, or maybe you want to gather inside someone's shack.
However you decide to operate, the real fun is getting on the air with
your club. For details about Winter Field Day, go to their website at
www.winterfieldday.org <http://www.winterfieldday.org>.

==> TEXAS CLUB USES ARRL GRANT TO WORK WITH SCOUTS

The Top of the Panhandle Amateur Radio Club received grants from the
ARRL Foundation Club Grant Program in 2022, and they've caused a lot of
excitement in the upper Texas Panhandle and Guymon, Oklahoma. The
grants are being used for a program that focuses on partnering with the
Boy Scouts of America troops in the area to help them fulfill several
merit badge requirements and to help them pass their amateur radio
license exams. There are activities planned for hidden transmitter
hunts, communicating on the air, and learning skills for emergency
management response.

Five Scouts and Scout Leaders have already gotten licensed and received
their call signs: Justin Jett, KJ5DFY; Queston Crum, KJ5DWN; Gannon
Crum, KJ5DPT; Eli Carthel, KJ5DTD, and Lisa Carthel, KJ5DRR. There are
four families in the program.

Six out of 12 candidates passed their amateur radio license exams in
Spearman Texas on December 29, 2023. Five are newly licensed
Technicians, and one upgraded to their General-class license. The five
Technicians are James Shockley, Queston Crum, Joseph Macias, Jaysen
Macias, and Audrey House. They've been studying the exam information
for months and will receive their call signs soon. The mentors were:
Jay Bradley, AG5OG; Bobette Doerrie, N5IS; Jerome Doerrie, K5IS; Brian
Holloway, KC5TPU, and Tom House.

By Bobette Doerrie, N5IS

==> NEW ARRL AWARD CERTIFICATES

One of the special things about going to club meetings is witnessing
awards being presented. Sometimes the awards are for many years of
service, whlie others are for recent accomplishments. ARRL has added
three new awards for clubs to give out to make sure that new members,
as well as the established veterans, can be recognized. Visit
www.arrl.org/awards <http://www.arrl.org/awards> for more information
on each of these club-level awards.

Mentor Award - For the ham that goes the extra mile to help others
enjoy the hobby.

First Contact Award - For the new ham to celebrate their first on-air
contact.

Rag Chewers' Club - To recognize those that can chew the rag for at
least 30 minutes

Each of these certificates is provided as a fillable PDF and can be
printed out. We all know someone that fills the requirements for these,
and the clubs can now recognize them as well.

==> WRITE FOR CLUB STATION

Clubs are the backbone of the amateur radio community. Whether you're
part of a special interest or general club, its members are the
community that you serve. In the same way that every ham is different,
each club is also different -- not every club will offer the same
programs and projects to their member community.

QST's newest column, "Club Station," is a space for clubs to share
their practical ideas about what has helped lead them to their success.
If your club has developed a creative way to get around common
challenges, we want to hear from you!

If you're interested in writing for "Club Station," please follow the
author guidelines that are tailored to this column. Additionally,
you'll find a Club Profile Form at the end of the author guidelines,
which must be filled out and included with your submission. If this
form is missing, your submission will not be considered complete.

Club Station Author Guidelines and Profile Form
<http://www.arrl.org/files/file/QST/This%20Month%20in%20QST/2022/Club%20Column%20Author%20Guide%20and%20Form.pdf>

==> SUBMITTING INFO FOR THIS NEWSLETTER

ARRL Club News is for radio clubs to show how they are working in the
community and the hobby to advance amateur radio. If your club
completes a project, supports an event, does an EmComm activation, or
activates a park, we want to hear about it. You can submit your
newsletter article to us at clubs@arrl.org. We like to get them as text
or Word files instead of PDFs. If you have pictures, please submit them
with caption information, as well as the name and call sign of the
photographer. We want to highlight the good work being done by the
clubs and show others in the community. Think of this as a chance to
show off your club and your programs.

==> HOW TO PLAN AND APPLY FOR AN ARRL HAMFEST OR CONVENTION

If your amateur radio club is planning to host a convention, hamfest,
tailgate, or swapfest, please consider applying for it to be an
ARRL-sanctioned event. To learn what it means to be an ARRL-sanctioned
event, and to get some ideas on how to prepare for and conduct a
hamfest or convention, visit www.arrl.org/arrl-sanctioned-events
<http://www.arrl.org/arrl-sanctioned-events>.

To have your event sanctioned, complete the online application at
www.arrl.org/hamfest-convention-application
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfest-convention-application>.

The ARRL Hamfests and Conventions Calendar can be found online at
www.arrl.org/hamfests <http://www.arrl.org/hamfests>. In addition, the
Convention and Hamfest Calendar that runs in QST each month also
presents information about upcoming events.

==> IMPORTANT LINKS

ARRL Home: www.arrl.org <http://www.arrl.org/>

Find an ARRL Affiliated Club: www.arrl.org/clubs
<http://www.arrl.org/clubs>

Find your ARRL Section: www.arrl.org/sections
<http://www.arrl.org/sections>

Find a license class in your area: www.arrl.org/class
<http://www.arrl.org/class>

Find a license exam in your area: www.arrl.org/exam
<http://www.arrl.org/exam>

Find a hamfest or convention: www.arrl.org/hamfests
<http://www.arrl.org/hamfests>

Email ARRL Clubs: clubs@arrl.org

ARRL Club News is published every month (12 times each year). ARRL
members may subscribe at no cost or unsubscribe by editing their Member
Data Page at www.arrl.org/opt-in-out
<https://home.arrl.org/action/My-Account/Opt-In-Out>. Archived issues
can be found at http://www.arrl.org/club-news