[Attachment(s) from James-KB7TBT included below]
Amateur Radio Newsline Report 2015, June 10, 2016
*** CLOSED CIRCUIT ADVISORY ****
The following is a closed circuit advisory and not necessarily for
broadcast.
Just a brief reminder that time is running out for you or your club to
nominate a deserving young radio amateur for our Bill Pasternak Newsline
Young Ham Of The Year award. Nominations must arrive by midnight local
time on June 30th of this year. That's just a couple of weeks away.
Full information and the nominating form can be found on our website,
arnewsline.org, under the YHOTY tab. And please note, the California
mailing address is no longer valid. The new address is in New York and
is listed on the nominating form. If you'?ve sent your nominating
package to California, please resubmit it to the New York address. We
hope to honor your amazing young radio amateur this August as we award
the 30th anniversary edition of the Young Ham Of The Year award.
Also, this is a special, extended newscast and will contain 3 segments
and 2 ID breaks.
Thank you. Now here's Paul Braun, WD9GCO with Newsline# 2015. Paul?
Amateur Radio Newsline Report Number 2015 with a release date of Friday,
June 10, 2016 to follow in 5-4-3-2-1.
The following is a QST. ARES volunteers are activated in Texas and
Kentucky. A special lighthouse takes on a special mission. A
Massachusetts ham club faces the loss of its home. And on the first
anniversary of the passing of Newsline creator/producer Bill Pasternak,
WA6ITF, we offer a tribute from friends in this expanded edition of
Amateur Radio Newsline coming your way right now.
****
BILLBOARD CART HERE
****
ARES ACTIVATIONS NEEDED IN TEXAS, KENTUCKY
PAUL: We begin this week's newscast with a somber reminder that one very
vital aspect of amateur radio - the Amateur Radio Emergency Service, or
ARES - springs into action most effectively in the aftermath of a
tragedy or during a crisis. That was the case in Houston, Texas, last
week, as the region was besieged by deadly flooding. We hear more from
Mike Askins, KE5CXP.
MIKE'S REPORT: Unrelenting floods in Harris County, Texas, and much of
the southeastern region of the state spurred the county's Office of
Homeland Security & Emergency Management to move to a level of Increased
Readiness - Level 3 - activating the Amateur Radio Emergency Service in
South Texas District 14 for a short while on June 2.
The section's Emergency Coordinator, Frank Aguilar, N5SSH, said that in
spite of the fact that communications were not disrupted, ARES efforts
were nonetheless needed to deal with what he called "situational
awareness issues" in the weather-drenched region. Flooded streets posed
a particular problem as the dangerous weather failed to let up. District
14 Emergency Coordinator Jeff Walter, KE5FGA, requested South Texas
District 14 ARES volunteers to report through WebEOC or, lacking access,
to use repeaters.
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Mike Askins, KE5CXP.
PAUL/ANCHOR: There was also a tragedy in Kentucky's Hardin County where
ARES volunteers were activated on June 1 to assist in a different crisis
- one involving a missing aircraft. Two days after the single-engine
plane was reported missing on May 30, the hams joined emergency
responders, law enforcement, the Red Cross and the Civil Air Patrol in
their search. The aircraft was bound for home at Owensboro Airport in
Kentucky at the time it went missing.
On June 1, the wreckage of the plane was spotted from a helicopter in a
remote wooded area. The search team later recovered the body of the
pilot, identified as retired physician Robert C. Dalzell of Owensboro.
He was 70 years old.
(WBKO-TV, ARRL)
**
TRANSMITTING AT THE SPEED OF LIGHTHOUSE
PAUL/ANCHOR: A recent activation of a small lighthouse on Canada's
Prince Edward Island has become a shining example of how to promote good
will and tourism - and even ham radio! We hear more from Amateur Radio
Newsline's Neil Rapp, WB9VPG.
NEIL'S REPORT: Because lighthouses serve as navigational aids for
travelers who often cross great distances, the Souris Lighthouse was a
natural choice for Bernie Cormier VE9BGC and his friend George Dewar
VY2GF, who activated the Prince Edward Island lighthouse for three days,
during the first weekend in June. Thus the small team of amateurs on
Prince Edward Island became a true beacon themselves - using 15, 20 and
40 meters to draw attention to this small province in Atlantic Canada.
Speaking recently with Amateur Radio Newsline, George said that despite
challenging band conditions, the hams logged more than 100 contacts.
Most were in the U.S., although signals from Croatia, France and Germany
found their way to the lighthouse. There was even one ham from
Melbourne, Australia who they worked with their 100 watts and Bernie's
vertical on 20 meters. The hams also attracted attention off the air,
from foreign tourists visiting the lighthouse who got to see some radio
magic happen.
But operating as VY2PLH was more than just a means of identification,
George said: It was the very conversation-starter they hoped for, as one
station or another would ask "VY2 - where is THAT?"
Being able to call attention to Prince Edward Island, an agricultural
region known more for its potatoes and its mussels, was a good thing, he
said. Connected to the rest of Canada by ferries and a single bridge,
PEI just gained another navigational route via the ionosphere. Or, as
George says, QUOTE "We are getting the place a little better known
around the world. Hey you never can tell."
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Neil Rapp, WB9VPG.
***
NOT JUST ALONG FOR THE RIDE
PAUL/ANCHOR: Although members of the Queen Anne's Amateur Radio Club,
K3QAC, on Maryland's Eastern Shore, will also be participating in Field
Day on Saturday, June 25, some hams are doing double duty by starting
early in the morning to ensure the safety of as many as 400 bicyclists
in the Two Rivers Bike Ride. The fifth annual ride is a benefit for the
Wye River Upper School, which serves students with learning
disabilities, and the Corsica River Conservancy, a nature preservation
group. The scenic ride begins in Centreville, Maryland, with courses
ranging from 15 to 100 miles.
The hams will be working net control, keeping in contact with radio
operators at seven rest stops. There will also be hams on roving
vehicles that provide aid to cyclists in need.
For more information about the benefit bike ride, visit
wyeriverupperschool.org
(MYEASTERNSHORE, MARYLAND)
**
SCOUTS KEEP K2BSA ACTIVE
PAUL/ANCHOR: K2BSA is on the air again. Working three portable stations
- in three different states - Boy Scouts continue to call CQ in the name
of scouting. Here's Amateur Radio Newsline's Bill Stearns, NE4RD, with
this week's report.
BILL STEARNS REPORT:
This week in Radio Scouting we have 3 scout camps on the air in MO, OH,
and NM.
William Coverdell, WD0BC, will be the control operator for the portable
0 station at Camp Geiger in St Joseph, MO. William will have the camp
on the air on HF Voice Wednesdays through Fridays from 1500 to 1700 Zulu
time, beginning June 15th and continuing through the summer until July 23rd.
John Baddour, KC8KI, will be the control operator for the portable 8
station at Camp Wyandot at Firelands Reservation in Wakeman, OH. John
will have his Radio Merit Badge participants on the air on Wednesdays
beginning June 15th and running through July 21st.
We continue to have Dale Finley, KB5NFT, the control operator for the
portable 5 station at the Philmont Scout Camp in Cimarron, NM, running
throughout the summer.
Please help support this activity, and others involving youth in amateur
radio, by working and spotting them on the air and online. For more
information on K2BSA and radio scouting, please visit http://www.k2bsa.net/.
For Amateur Radio Newsline and the K2BSA Amateur Radio Association, this
is Bill Stearns NE4RD.
**
IN THE RUNNING TO VOLUNTEER
PAUL/ANCHOR: The Boston Amateur Radio Club is looking for volunteer
radio operators to help at the Boston Athletic Association's 10K on
Sunday, June 26. Hams who want to provide support for the event should
plan to be available on that day from 6 a.m. to noon, and will need to
bring a handheld dual band radio -- one with a gain antenna would be
helpful.
Returning volunteers and newcomers can both sign up now, and should
visit the 10K site at baa.org, navigate to the volunteer page and select
the button reading "volunteer now." Then just follow the instructions
and complete the application. If you have questions about the process,
contact Brett Smith, AB1RL, the ham club's public service coordinator,
at ab1rl@brettcsmith.org
(BOSTON AMATEUR RADIO CLUB)
**
BREAK HERE:
Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio
Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world, including the
W0CRA repeater system in Denver, Boulder and Colorado Springs on Sundays
at 9 a.m. local time.
***
ONE HAM CLUB'S MOVING EXPERIENCE
PAUL/ANCHOR: Every ham knows that finding a new radio-friendly house and
moving is no fun. But it's even less fun when you're an 83-year-old club
with a full station, antennas and other gear and you only have a few
months to do so. The Framingham, Massachusetts Amateur Radio Association
is facing just that right now. I spoke with club director Sumner, W1VIV,
about their situation and what they're looking for:
SUMNER WEISMAN: We are a very old club. We have been here in Framingham,
Massachusetts since 1933. We have an actual video of a 1933 club meeting
where they're all wearing suits and ties and things like that. We have
been in this facility for about 38 years and we want to remain a club in
Framingham, Massachusetts. We have always been in this town and we need
to find a new facility -- hopefully something cost-free as we have now
with this government facility. We need to find something before we're
forced to move out of our present facility, which is the basement of a
town-owned museum. We have to move out in early September. We're looking
for a place with an operating station where we can put up an antenna and
we can have some radios and things like that, where people can come in
every week and operate. It should have some kind of a classroom. We give
VE tests so we need some sort of a classroom and meeting space for board
meetings and VE tests.
PAUL: The problem they're facing is that the old civic building that
they're in needs costly heating system repairs to the tune of $1-million
and the town is not willing to spend the money. So the club and the
other tenants of the building all have to find a new home. If you'd like
more information or would like to help them find a suitable new home,
please visit their website at www.w1fy.org
We here at Amateur Radio Newsline wish them luck in their search. For
Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Paul Braun, WD9GCO.
**
IRISH AMATEURS TAKE ON THE WORLD
PAUL/ANCHOR: Just months after their first organizational meeting in
January, a group of ambitious DXers in Ireland is already preparing to
jump into an international championship in radiosport. Here's more from
Amateur Radio Newsline's Jeremy Boot, G4NJH.
JEREMY'S REPORT: It didn't take long for a very new group of DXers in
Ireland to decide they could take on the world. Just this past January,
the amateurs held an organizing meeting in the Maldron Hotel in
Portlaoise and that was the genesis of new EI DX group. Now the newly
minted collective of contesters is preparing to work as many
International Amateur Radio Union stations as they can during the IARU
HF World Championship on 9 July and 10 July.
The amateurs will use the call sign EI0HQ, which is held by the Irish
Radio Transmitters Society.
Their plans, according to the IRTS website, includes creation of a
comprehensive multi-multi station at Garbally College in Ballinasloe.
The global contest will take place on six bands between 160 and 10
meters, in both SSB and CW.
When the DXing group first assembled and organized, its stated
objectives were to be a part of all DX activities possible, from chasing
DXCC to DXpeditioning. At the time, there was no mention of world
domination. Of course, winning a contest is all in good sport, and the
group does hope for a respectable showing next month.
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Jeremy Boot, G4NJH, in Nottingham.
(IRISH RADIO TRANSMITTERS SOCIETY)
**
THE WORLD OF DX
Dave, GM0LVI, is working between June 17th and July 6th as SV8/GM0LVI/P
from Zakynthos Island. He will operate holiday style using 10 watts. QSL
via GM0LVI, direct or by the Bureau. He is not accepting LoTW.
Hans, DK3PZ, will be on the air from June 11th to June 18th as LA/DK3PZ
from Rennesoy Island. He will be working the bands holiday style. Send
QSLs via his home callsign, direct or by the Bureau.
Mike, DG5LAC, is active on SSB through June 18 as EA8/DG5LAC from
Fuerteventura Island. Find him on 40 through 10 meters. Send QSLs via
his home callsign, direct, by the Bureau, LoTW or eQSL.
Members of a South Korean Amateur Radio Club will use the call sign 6M6M
from Jeju Island between June 23rd and June 26th. Find the club on 6
meters only using CW, SSB, FM and the Digital modes. QSL via HL2UVH.
(OHIO PENN DX BULLETIN)
**
KICKER: THEY BELIEVE IN BELIZE
PAUL: Are they alive or have they disbanded? Amateur Radio Newsline's
Graham Kemp, VK4BB, has this report on the mystery behind the
disappearance - and the reappearance - of the Belize Amateur Radio Club.
GRAHAM: Where on earth is the Belize Amateur Radio Club? Well, if you
know your geography, you might answer "Central America." Or if an
oldtimer, British Honduras. But if you ask the International Amateur
Radio Union, you'd be told it is nowhere -- it has gone missing for the
last 23 years. In fact, that's what the IARU formally stated in a late
May news release, reporting that a longtime lack of IARU activity from
the club could only be interpreted as its death knell.
But visit the website at barc.bz, and you'll find a different story. A
statement there - along with a link to the club's Facebook page - states
that the Belize group is far from dead. In fact, a news item posted on
the site on May 21 reports that the club was recently certified as an
NGO, a non-governmental organization.
So what's happening? By all reports, it seems the club has been
resurrected. A June 2 posting on its Facebook page declares QUOTE "We
are the new BARC.. there was an old BARC that ceased to exist some time
ago." The statement goes on to say that the new club has actually
submitted a formal application to represent Belize with the IARU in
Region 2.
That, it turns out, is just what the IARU is looking for.
Meanwhile, the club seems very full of activity and life. A May 29
posting on its Facebook page even shares an announcement of a meeting
members held in April - and photos of the group's field trips in May,
including one to the village of Blackman Eddy. It seems that in Belize,
where there's life, there's hope. And ham radio. Belize me!
For Amateur Radio Newsline, I'm Graham Kemp, VK4BB.
(FACEBOOK, IARU)
**
BREAK HERE:
Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio
Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world, including the
w9EAR repeater in Vincennes, Indiana on Monday nights.
**
REMEMBRANCES OF BILL PASTERNAK, SK, June 11, 2015
PAUL/ANCHOR: In the final segment of this expanded news report, we take
time to remember Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF. To many, he was a friend, a
mentor, a fellow ham, a brother, and a founding father of Amateur Radio
Newsline and its Young Ham of the Year Award. He is a Silent Key whose
influence on the amateur world will never be silenced. We hear from
Amateur Radio Newsline's Don Wilbanks, AE5DW, and others who were lucky
enough to share his world - as we mark one year since his passing.
Here's Don:
DON: Milestone. A noun. A stone functioning as a milepost. A
significant event or stage in the life, progress, development, or the
like of a person, nation, etc.
We're marking a milestone.
On Saturday, June 11 2016 we mark the first anniversary of the passing
of Bill Pasternak, WA6ITF. This is significant because it was Bill who
brought us all together. Nearly 40 years ago he was one of the creators
of the Westlink Report. That morphed into Amateur Radio Newsline.
Amateur Radio Newsline created the Young Ham Of The Year award. But
Bill was so much more than Westlink, Newsline and the YHOTY.
I could go on and on about Bill and the impact he had on my life, but I
only knew him for a couple of decades. Let's go farther back and hear
from some folks who knew him way before then.
In 1986, Bill had the idea to honor young radio amateurs, the Young Ham
Of The Year award, now named after Bill. He got on the phone and called
up a few people to see if they were interested in helping sponsor the
award. One of these was CQ Publications. Rich Moseson, W2VU, is the
editor of CQ Magazine:
"I can't remember a single specific highlight of my relationship with
Bill, which went on over 30 years.
What stands out to me the most are 2 things. One is how he's a perfect
example of how ham radio can enable you to shine in ways that other
parts of your life may not. Professionally, yes he worked in television
in Hollywood but he was a videotape editor and maintenance person. He
kept their equipment running. It's not a high profile position. But
ham radio allowed him to shine as the producer of Newsline, as producer
of videos and as the founder of the Young Ham Of The Year award. He
passed that along to other people as well. He gave me my first
opportunity to do television field producing, to Meet Senator John Glenn
and I don't remember what else.
The other thing that stands out in my mind is with the Young Ham Of The
Year award how his total devotion was to the kids. Every year he would
sponsor the dinner and he would give the kid the who won the award the
option of where to go. I suppose we could have gone to some fancy
restaurant someplace, but we usually ended up at either a bar b q place
or, I remember one year we all went to 5 Guys and got hamburgers and
fries, because that's what the kid wanted. That said so much to me about
Bill and his dedication to promoting youth in ham radio, and just his
whole way of life and of being.
Those are things that I'll always remember about him."
Thanks Rich. Rich shared the stage with Bill and the young ham award
winner for many years. Another sponsor from day one is Yaesu. Now with
Ham Radio Outlet, Chip Margelli, K7JA, then with Yaesu, also shared that
stage for decades:
"This is Chip Margelli, K7JA and my remembrences of Bill Pasternak are
that he was every day, every minute of every day, trying to promote
amateur radio.
Trying to bring amateur radio to young people, trying to bring amateur
radio to people who didn't know the difference between a megacycle and a
motorcycle, and he was tireless in his efforts.
He also was tireless in his efforts to improve the knowledge base. All
these videos that Bill and Dave Bell and others were so deeply involved
in weren't just to try to recruit new hams. They were trying to improve
the knowledge base amond existing hams, and that's the thing I remember
the most about Bill.
He was always trying to make new hams out of no hams and to make better
hams out of current hams and to his last day he was going after that
goal of bringing more people the joy of amateur radio."
Thanks Chip. Have you noticed a trend here? Education. Youth. That's
not by accident. A more recent addition to the Newsline fold is Mark
Abramowicz, NT3V:
"How does one reflect on the loss of a good friend and fellow ham ? a
man whose life was devoted to family and Amateur Radio.
That?s right, family was always first for Bill Pasternak. And, I guess I
became part of that extended family after my son, Josh, then KB3GWY, was
selected to become the Young Ham of the Year by Amateur Radio Newsline.
I listened to Newsline and it?s predecessor, the Westlink Report carried
on a local repeater for years here in my area of eastern Pennsylvania.
Little did I realize I would one day become a contributor.
But it went beyond that as Bill asked me to shepherd the Young Ham of
the Year Award after its long-time leader bowed out.
As I said, ham radio aside, Bill Pasternak was always the guy who put
family first ? his family and my family. His emails and phone calls at
all hours of the day and night ? weekends, too, were always welcome.
And, they always began with ? How?s the family? Yes, there was business
to transact but it was genuine concern for family that was first.
To tell the truth, I have missed those calls. And, I?ve come to miss a
man who was like a second father, an uncle, and a very, very dear friend.
He may be gone, but his legacy will live on not just in Newsline and
it?s work serving the amateur community ? but in my heart and the hearts
of many he touched with his genuine love of his family ? all of us."
Thanks Mark.
This just scratches the surface of the kind of man, the kind of ham,
that was Bill Pasternak. He was the kind of guy that you didn't have
the heart to say no to. That's how he brought in the dozens of
broadcast professionals into the all-volunteer team that made up, and
continues to make up Amateur Radio Newsline and the Young Ham Of The
Year award.
So as we mark this milestone on the path of life we pause to reflect,
remember and honor the man who brought us all together. The Newsline
staff, those in the Young Ham Of The Year committee. The 30 years of
young hams who have been honored, their families and you, the listeners
and supporters of Amateur Radio Newsline. Without Bill, and without you
and all the others over the nearly 4 decades, none of this would matter.
So thank you Bill. Thank you for everything. We are all better people
just for knowing you.
I'm Don Wilbanks, AE5DW.
**
NEWSCAST CLOSE: With thanks to Alan Labs; the ARRL; Boston Amateur Radio
Club; the CBC; CQ Magazine; Facebook; Hap Holly and the Rain Report; the
IARU; Irish Radio Transmitter Society; K2BSA Amateur Radio Association;
MyEasternShoreMaryland; Southgate Amateur Radio News; Ted Randall's QSO
Radio Show; WANE-TV; WBKO-TV; Wireless Institute of Australia; WTWW
Shortwave; and you our listeners, that's all from the Amateur Radio
Newsline. Please send emails to our address at newsline@arnewsline.org.
More information is available at Amateur Radio Newsline's only official
website located at www.arnewsline.org.
And we remind you once again of the June 30 deadline to nominate
candidates for the Bill Pasternak Young Ham of the Year Award. Please
visit our website at arnewsline.org and click on the tab that says
"Y-H-O-T-Y" for information and an application. Remember to mail your
applications to the New York address printed on the application.
For now, with Caryn Eve Murray, KD2GUT, at the news desk in New York,
and our news team worldwide, I'm Paul Braun, WD9GCO, in Valparaiso,
Indiana saying 73 and as always we thank you for listening.
Amateur Radio Newsline(tm) is Copyright 2016. All rights reserved.
***
As a Service to the HAM Radio Community and HAM Operators all over the
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We hope you enjoyed it!
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Thank you and good day!
-73- ARNTE-0.1.0-OS2 build 42
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