Month: March 2005

The first-grade “HAMsters” at the Winn Brook school in Belmont will soon have a working antenna for a shack in their classroom, according to their teacher, Donna LaRoche.

LaRoche has received invaluable assistance with the project from Chuck Counselman, W1HIS. (See “The Next Generation of CW Operators”.) “[W1HIS] has met with our principal, the custodian, head of buildings and grounds, and even the school electrician.”

According to LaRoche, “We now have a coax cable installed from the classroom to the roof. We are waiting for the school department authorities to bless an antenna up there. [Chuck] is planning a doublet, 70 feet long, fed with 450 ohm line. There will be a balun between the line and the coax. This will be our antenna for 7 MHz and up.” LaRoche isn’t concerned with the lack of 80 meter coverage. “The rig will only be used during the day and 80 meters is not very interesting in the middle of the day.”

“The HAMsters and I are learning CW together!” adds LaRoche. “We practice every day after lunch for twenty minutes. They are becoming very proficient.”

LaRoche, who is a member of the Framingham Amateur Radio Association, earned her ham ticket, KB1LWY, at a Boston ARC VE session in January, 2005. She made her first QSO on February 25, operating from W1AW. Appropriately, it was with Chuck, W1HIS. “Boy, was I excited!” Donna exclaims.

For more information about the HAMsters, visit their web site at http://www.belmont.k12.ma.us/class_pages/laroche/ham_radio/.

[Left: The HAMsters holding an adorable stuffed toy kangaroo, koala bear, Australian Animal Book and wearing Australian icon pins kindly sent by one of their 3YOX ham friends, David Gemmell, VK4GL. Right: HAMsters “operating” and practicing CW. Photos courtesy KB1LWY]

Eastern MA ARES members will participate in the upcoming TOPOFF 3 exercise sponsored by the Department of Homeland Security on April 4, according to Eastern MA Section Emergency Coordinator Rob Macedo, KD1CY.

The TOPOFF 3 scenario will depict a complex terrorist campaign beginning in Connecticut and New Jersey and leading to national and international response that will include Canada, where the exercise will be known as “TRIPLE PLAY,” and the United Kingdom, where it will be called “ATLANTIC BLUE.”

“We are sending an ARESMAT team of 4 for the TOPOFF exercise […] at the request of Connecticut ARES and Connecticut ARES Section Emergency Coordinator, Chuck Rexroad, AB1CR,” writes Macedo. “The main client that Connecticut ARES will be serving is the Red Cross. At the time of the meeting, more Amateurs were needed but after the meeting AB1CR stated that they had all the assignments filled.”

[For more information on TOPOFF 3 see “Amateur Radio to Have Role in Largest-Ever Mass Casualty”.]

Plans to establish an internet gateway-accessible remote base in Iraq have hit a snag, according to local amateur Keith Lamonica, W7DXX. (See YI9 Internet Gateway Close to Reality.)

“[The] Voice of America did not come through on their promise to ship the equipment and it is still in Washington, D.C.,” writes Lamonica. “We tried the Army but they can’t help either. I have asked one of our control operators who works for ABC in D.C. to see if they can help.”

The Easton, MA amateur announced plans for the remote base system in Iraq almost six months ago. W7DXX obtained the call sign YI9DXX and identified a location to house the installation. Lamonica also recruited willing Iraqi amateurs to help maintain the remote base.

It is with deepest sympathy that we announce the passing of Erla Schwarm, wife of long time Amateur Radio Operator Ed Schwarm NX1V and mother of the Norfolk County ARES District Emergency Coordinator Steve Schwarm W3EVE who passed away on Tuesday March 22, 2005. A memorial Service will be held on Wednesday March 30, 2005 at 2:00pm at the Federated Church in Hyannis, Ma.
A scholarship fund for Teachers will be setup in Erla Schwarm’s name to be managed by Steve Schwarm’s church.

All our thoughts and wishes go out to the Schwarm family in their time of sorrow

Rick Zach, K1RJZ writes on FraminghamARA-L:

Free TV gear from WCVB-TV to non-profits. (Ham clubs/orgs are non-profits)

HATV-stations get first refusals, but if gear is still available as of Monday at 2PM, any non-profits, schools, local access cable channels, etc can have certain gear for free. Organizations can come to ch-5 on Monday (March 28) from 3-6pm to look at what is available. Take it away that night. Price: Free.

Item requests go not to me but directly to WCVB-TV Public Affairs Director Karen Holmes-Ward at 781-433-4037 or via email at kholmes@hearst.com . Specific equipment phone and email requests to Karen will be time-stamped on a first-come first-served basis. Requests can go in immediately and a commitment to remove the gear by Thursday is required.

Additional gear is not shown as we are adding to the inventory hourly.

Descriptions with pictures.

http://216.235.250.154/hatbay/

The location of the Norwood ARC volunteer exams has changed, according to NARC’s Rick Cantin, AA1TI.

“We are changing the location to the Savage Center, Room 210, at 275 Prospect Street in Norwood,” reports Cantin. Sessions are held the third Thursday of each month at 7:30 pm.

Previously, exam sessions were held in the Willett Room of the Norwood Civic Center and at the Walpole Senior Center (May through August).

For further information, contact Rick Cantin at aa1ti@aa1ti.org.

Members of the Town of Taunton RACES routinely accept radiogram training messages from Massachusetts Emergency Managent Agency’s Region II Headquarters in Bridgewater for delivery to EMA Directors in Taunton, Whitman and other Region II towns and cities each first Monday of the month.

Shown at the City of Taunton Emergency Operations Center are (standing, left to right): George Pereira, KB1KZV; Don Burke, KB1LXH; and Peter Ferreira, KB1LXG; (seated, left to right:) Carlos Wharton WP4US; Bruce Hayden NI1X.

—Thanks, Whitman ARC Spectrum, March 2005

Terry Stader, KA8SCP writes on PART-L:

PARTers (and anyone else for that matter) are welcome to join any of the several email subscribed “lists” that we have to offer. These lists are email subscriptions to specialized topics. Some are hosted on the WB1GOF.org server and some are hosted with Yahoo Groups. Below are the lists that are available that are applicable to PARTers:PART-l@wb1gof.org – this list. It is the general PART/WB1GOF email list for announcing and discussions about general club activities and business.

NCS-l@wb1gof.org – An email list for matters of the Sunday Night Net and other WB1GOF Net Control topics.

SCAN-l@wb1gof.org – An email list where we have discussions about the scanner/scanning aspect of radio communications.

MEMA_R1_WX@wb1gof.org – automated feed from NWS Taunton weather bulletins.

You can subscribe or unsubscribe to the above by sending a PLAIN TEXT message to listserver@wb1gof.org from the email account you wish to manange with the action you wish to take, for example:

subscribe scan-l
unsubscribe part-l

You can combine multiple listserver commands in one message. You can send the word “help” as a command to get the full list of commands available to you.

The external lists that you may find an interest in:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mema_region1_communications – Yahoo Group for MEMA Region 1 communications discussions. Subscribe: mema_region1_communications-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/mass_races_ares_skywarn_general – Yahoo Group for MA statewide discussions of RACES, ARES & Skywarn activities. Subscribe: mass_races_ares_skywarn_general-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask.

Terry Stader, KA8SCP
ka8scp@wb1gof.org

There will be an Emergency Communications Workshop on Saturday April 2nd, 2005 from 9:00 AM-4:00 PM at the Ipswich High and Middle School in Ipswich, Massachusetts.

This session is being put on by the ARES Section Staff through the efforts of Charlie Cooper-K1CHC, town of Ipswich Emergency Management Director and police detective. This Emergency Communications Workshop will provide the background and information to serve Amateur Radio Operators when they need to respond to a communications emergency. It will feature an Introduction and Conclusion to Emergency Communications, and five 1-hour training sessions on topics including:

Overview of Eastern Massachusetts ARES-RACES-SKYWARN Programs
Net Operations
NTS Traffic Message Handling
Basic Overview of ICS
Go Kits
Interactive Exercises on Field Operations

This training will also feature a 1-hour lunch that will be provided at no coerced cost to any Amateur who attends the session.

The presentations will be given by other Amateur Operators well versed in the topics listed above. The training will be a worthwhile endeavor not just for emergency communicators but for anyone who is an Amateur Radio Operator, and wants to learn more about the hobby.

Preregistration is requested but is not required in case anyone would like to attend at the last minute. Please try to preregister by Monday March 28th, 2005 to assure the meeting place is setup properly and we have enough refreshments for breaks between lectures and for the lunch break. We will, however, accept any last minute preregistrations after that day or any walk-ins as long as space permits.

Directions to the Ipswich High and Middle School:

The location of the Ipswich High and Middle School is 136 High Street which is also Route 1A/133, which is north of the center of town.

From the South-
Take route 93 North to Route 128 (95) North. Then take
Route 95 North off of Route 128. Take Route 133 East exit (Rowley). Stay on Route 133 and it will join Route 1A. Take a right onto Route 1A/133 South (East). Travel several miles and you will see the High/ Middle School on your right. The Performing Arts Center is on the right as you face the building.

From the North-
Take Route 95 or Route 1 South. Then take Route 133 east as described above.

From the West-
Take Route 128 North to Route 95 and follow above directions.

Alternate from the West-
Take Route 495 to either Route 128 North or to Route 133.

You can also obtain good directions from Mapquest by entering your destination address as 136 High Street in Ipswich, Mass.

There will be talk-in on the 145.49-Ipswich Repeater PL: 131.8.

For any additional information and to preregister for the workshop, please contact:

K1CHC-Charlie Cooper coopsail@rcn.com
KD1CY-Rob Macedo rmacedo@rcn.com

This training should be a worthwhile endeavor for anyone interested in learning more about emergency communications and amateur radio in general.
Respectfully Submitted,

Robert Macedo (KD1CY)
ARES SKYWARN Coordinator
Eastern Massachusetts ARES Section Emergency Coordinator
Pager #: (508) 354-3142
Home Phone #: (508) 994-1875 (After 6 PM)
Home/Data #: (508) 997-4503 (After 6 PM)
Work Phone #: 1-800-445-2588 Ext.: 72929 (8 AM-5 PM)
Email Address: rmacedo@rcn.com
http://users.rcn.com/rmacedo
1 1

Norwood ARC members participated in a public service video produced by the Town of Norwood recently. According to NARC President Barry Devine, K1BFD, “[we] gave a presentation on the club’s capabilities during an emergency, and even went so far as to stage a mock emergency sitution that was filmed and will be shown on the Norwood public access cable station.”

Norwood ARC members featured in the video include: N1OEF, W1ZSA, N1UEC, WA1MZJ and K1BFD.

Devine says the club will be receiving a copy of the finished product. It has also received permission to redistribute the video to members, and to make it available on the club’s web site as streaming video.

“Norwood official Bernie Cooper had all kinds of praise for the club and our capabilities,” added Devine. “Those comments will also be included in the video.”

—Thanks Norwood ARC K1JMR Newscarrier, Feb. 2005