The Cape Ann Amateur Radio Association will conduct a Technician Class License in a Day course on Saturday, March 7, 2009 from 8:30 am until 4 pm. The course, led by Stan Stone, W4HIX, will be held at the Lanesville Community Center on 8 Vulcan Street in Gloucester, MA.

Anyone interested may register by e-mailing Stan at <stan@lanescove.us>. The course is free; however, the exam fee is $15.00.

The MIT Radio Society (W1MX) will be celebrating the 100th anniversary of its founding this April 30th, 2009. In commemoration, the Society will be operating a special event station, W1MX/100, for a two week period beginning on April 30th and issuing a special QSL card.            

Additionally, the Society will be holding two events for Radio Society alumni at MIT during reunion week in June. Details are available on our website - http://web.mit.edu/w1mx/www/. Please spread the word! And if you are an alum, PLEASE get in touch with us at w1mx-100@mit.edu.

Shown here is a snapshot of the old Eastern MA ARRL web site circa December, 1998. At the time, our site was hosted by QSL.NET. The site consisted of static HTML pages. Elaine Chase, N1GTB a former ACC for EMA, served for many years as the site's webmaster.

Today's EMA ARRL web site content is served up via a Drupal content management system from a MySQL database.

One may view archives from other dates of this site--or any other internet site--by visiting http://www.archive.org.

On April 25, 2009 the Cape Cod National Seashore will have a full day of special old and new "communication" activities and programs to celebrate both International Marconi Day and National Junior Ranger Day. The event is free. A free shuttle bus will run between the sites in Eastham from 9:30 AM- 2 PM.

In celebration of International Marconi Day, the Marconi Cape Cod Radio Club, KM1CC, will operate from the Coast Guard Station, Eastham from 9 AM-4 PM.  This is a global event, radio operators from around the world will make contact with KM1CC to honor the birthday of the "Wizard of Wireless," Guglielmo Marconi, on his birth date, April 25, 1874.  Morse code or continuous wave (CW), and voice operations will be used.

KM1CC Operating Plan for International Marconi Day, April 25, 2009  UTC

CW and Phone on the following bands (General and Extra Class allocations):

17M   18.160 SSB           18.080 CW        40M   7.130-7.260 SSB         7.035  CW
20M   14.260 SSB           14.035 CW        80M   3.660-3.860 SSB         3.535  CW 

From 10 AM-1 PM, to expand the celebration of communication history on Cape Cod beyond Marconi, additional park sites in Eastham and the Marconi Station Site, Wellfleet that relate to communication history will be open.  Eastham sites include: Nauset Lighthouse, Three Sisters Lighthouses, and the French Cable Hut at Nauset Light Beach.  Kids can participate in a variety of activities at each site as part of a Kids’ Signal Jam:  Talking and Texting with Wires and Without.” Activities will include:   keys to practice sending Morse Code messages, walkie-talkies, rescue with signals, lighthouse flashing activities, signal flags, and testing wired equipment related to the early French Cable that sent telegraph messages from the Eastham and Orleans area to France for 80 years, 1879-1959.

At 2 PM at the Salt Pond Visitor Center, NASA space educator Rick Varner will revisit the recent space communications advances and offer speculation on visions for the future.  Recently, NASA announced successful tests of software and satellite hardware that could essentially create an interplanetary internet.  Such a communication network will open the gateway to the development of more complex missions and reliable communications for astronauts living and working upon the surface of the moon.

For more information see the enclosed press release, kid's schedule, or contact Barbara Dougan, KB1GSO at 508-255-3421 x16.

Is your club membership dropping off?  Do you have fewer and fewer members attending club meetings?  Do meetings seem dull and contentious?  One of the sure fire signs that your club is not meeting the needs of your members and the local ham radio community is a slowly declining character of your club meeting.   But, alas, there is a sure fired way of  reversing these trends and making your monthly club meetings more exciting!  . 

Make sure you always have a speaker for your meetings!   Is it as simple as that…..well not quite  but close!   You say you do this already?   Well OK, but there are some good guidelines for choosing speakers.  First, you should plan to always have a speaker at your monthly meetings.  Get your members used to the fact that each meeting will have a speaker.  Speakers or presenters often provide one of the real needs of local ham radio operators.  Our hobby is a highly technical one with many different facets. A speaker who talks on a technical subject will have a bigger draw than no speaker at all. 

A club should have a designated person who has the job of securing speakers for future meetings.  They should be asked to speak often months in advance.  I have found that potential speakers are more willing to speak if approached by the president of a club.  Not only should you secure a speaker in advance but also publicize the subject and the speaker in advance of your meeting.

You say you are having trouble locating club meeting speakers?  Well there are many sources.  I have found that you can look within your club.  The key is to be in tune with the interests of the members and convince them they should speak on a topic that has high interest to them.  This almost always works…..but it takes effort !   There is also the ARRL EMA Speakers list posted and updated on this web site.  This is a fine list of potential speakers who have already given a talk at least once.  Use this list!   From a speakers standpoint giving the same talk to another ham radio club is easy.  You will seldom get turned down.  Your members can also be a great source of information and contact points for speakers from other local clubs.  The speakers are out there and willing to talk….its your job to make sure you always have one as the centerpoint of your monthly meeting.

Bo Budinger

WA1QYM

ARRL EMA ACC   

The Multiple Sclerosis Society has again organized two local events this year, but no longer on the same day. The “Boston MS Walk” will be on Sunday, 4 April, organized as it has been for the past several years. The “MS Journey of Hope,” will start and finish in Newton on Saturday, 5 April.

We have been asked to support communications for both. The “Boston MS Walk” will start and finish at the Harvard athletic facility on North Harvard St near Soldiers Field Rd in Brighton. The route of the walk will be on both sides of the river in Cambridge and Boston.

The “MS Journey of Hope” starts and finishes at Newton South High School with a 7.5 mile course. There will be several checkpoints, vehicles and medical coverage for us to support.

Each will be managed by a Net Control station, using both VHF and UHF repeaters. Your help is vital for these worthy causes. If you can lend a hand, contact Rick, KB1LYJ, at rpsavage@comcast.net or 781.289.7364.

--Thanks, Boston ARC's The SPARC, February, 2009

On January 30, 2009, the ARRL's Executive Committee released its Mobile Amateur Radio Operation Policy Statement in response to proposed legislation springing up across the country regarding the use of cellular telephones while driving.

The full text of the Policy Statement, along with a response from EMA/WMA State Government Liaison Shawn O'Donnell, K3HI can be found on the EMA/WMA SGL web site.

                          The KY1N Memorial List
    Scheduled Amateur Radio Volunteer Examinations - CT MA ME NH RI VT
                                  2/14/09
                             Jim, WW1Y, Editor
Date     Time   Contact                        Location           Phone
02/16/09 19:00  Skip Denault, KB1CNB           Fall River      MA 774-644-3469
02/16/09 18:30  Francis D'auria, W1AD          Pittsford       VT 802-775-3033
02/17/09 19:00  Paul Lux, K1PL                 Portland        CT 860-635-1742
02/18/09 19:30  Nick Altenbernd, KA1MQX        Cambridge       MA 617-253-3776
02/19/09 19:30  Louis Harris, N1UEC            Canton          MA 508-668-0858
02/23/09 09:00  William D Wilson, K1IN         Bloomfield      CT 860-869-1059
02/23/09 19:00  Walton G Congdon, W1ZPB        Northfield      MA 413-498-2729
02/25/09 19:00 *Paul Upham, KD1YH              Shirley         MA 978-597-6535
02/27/09 18:00  David Cote, W1FAB              Holyoke         MA 413-575-2950
02/28/09 12:30  Mitch Stern, W1SJ              Colchester      VT 802-879-6589
02/28/09 09:00  Kenneth Carr, KB1AWV           Cranston        RI 401-828-1665
02/28/09 12:00 +Daniel Lee, W1DFL              Danvers         MA 978-352-4513
02/28/09 09:00  Jim Heedles, WW1Y              Nashua          NH 603-673-7395
03/08/09 12:00  Bob Quinn, WV1A                Gloucester      MA 978-283-4660
03/09/09 19:00  Jim Clogher, N1ICN             Brookline       MA 617-364-4658
03/10/09 19:00  Lawrence Polowy, KU1L          Thomaston       CT 860-283-4089
03/11/09 19:00  Bruce Anderson, W1LUS          Billerica       MA 978-851-2886
03/12/09 19:00  Louis Mester, W1CH             Providence      RI 401-263-6045
03/13/09 18:30  Ralph T Stetson III, KD1R      Burlington      VT 802-878-6454
03/14/09 08:45 *William J Needham, K1WN        Braintree       MA 781-843-4400
03/14/09 09:00  Ben Fleck, K2LYE               Falmouth        MA 508-540-2583
  

Boston's Blue Hills Reservation has been chosen as the site of the 9th USA national championships of Amateur Radio Direction Finding (ARDF) June 5-7, 2009. [Full story]

The Eastern Area NTS Digital Report for January, 2009 has has been posted to nts.ema.arrl.org for your viewing pleasure.