The OCRA Club Meeting Minutes from February 14, 2022 can be viewed in a PDF file by clicking the link below.
OCRA Club Meeting Minutes – February 14 2022
Best regards,
Laurie Meier, N1YXU
OCRA Secretary
Backup Net Control Training – OCRA AUXCOMM
Mark (KR3AM) provided backup net control training during the Saturday, March 5, 2022 OCRA net. The training has been posted to YouTube and is available by clicking the link below.
73,
Laurie Meier, N1YXU
OCRA Secretary
Net Control Training – OCRA AUXCOMM
Doug (WA5ETS) provided net control training during the Saturday, February 26, 2022 OCRA net. The training has been posted to YouTube and is available by clicking the link below.
73,
Laurie Meier, N1YXU
OCRA Secretary
Nicholas “Nick” Paul Szydlek – Silent Key February 5, 2022
NICHOLAS PAUL SZYDLEK
Born in Detroit, Michigan on September 16, 1944, Nicholas Paul Szydlek lived all of his 77 years with faith, humor, love, and friendship. He enlisted and served in the United States Navy as a radar technician/electrician’s mechanic from 1963 – 1967, stationed in the Mediterranean (“tracking the Russians” he used to say) on the “tin cans” as he put it The USS Mole and the USS Basilone. He also served as part of the United States Naval Reserve and the United States Coast Guard Reserve. He was decorated with the National Service Defense Medal.
Nick married his wife, Rosemary, in 1969 and their son, Nick, Jr. was born in 1970. After the Navy, Nick worked as an electrician’s mechanic and engineer, living in Massachusetts and New Hampshire.
In the late 1990’s Nick and Rosemary moved to his hometown area in Michigan where he continued working as an engineer. He retired in 2012, joining his son and daughter-in-law in Pittsboro, North Carolina where he began to hone is orneriness. He took fashion cues from no one – his signature every day look was all his own: sensible trousers, comfortable button-up shirt, suspenders, and comfortable shoes.
He established his own small machining/prototyping business, Foxtek, Inc. where he was his own boss and worked at his own pace. He hung out in his workshop with his grand-dog, Artie, a large black lab who really loved his grandpa. At night, with grand-dog Ireland at his side, he enjoyed struggling with the TV remote and disagreeing with Rosemary on what to watch. He hated most technology, got frustrated with cell phones, and hated all the noises from his iPad, but was secretly excited every time his son gave him all the new gadgets.
Nick was especially passionate about ham radio with an amateur extra ticket and was a Founding member of Chatham AUXCOMM; a proud member of Orange County Radio Amateurs (OCRA); and Durham FM Association (DFMA). He loved to share his knowledge and get others excited about ham radio.
As a member of St. Thomas More Catholic Church he attended mass every Sunday until Covid-19 and his illness made that difficult for him. He volunteered on many occasions and served on committees including the Church Council and was head of the Friends in Faith Senior Group.
Nick is survived by his loving wife of more than 52 years, Rosemary; his son, Nicholas, Jr. (Melissa); brother, Eddie (Cynthia) Szydlek; sisters, Carol (Fred) Zirotti and Cherilyn (Don) Smith; and many nieces, nephews, cousins, friends and peers who love and respect him.
He was preceded in death by his parents Barbara J. Eshelman Szydlek-Lawless; Edwin Joseph Rivers and stepmother Frances Rivers; and brothers Lawrence S. Szydlek and Phillip P. Szydlek.
In lieu of flowers please donate to your favorite cancer organization or St. Jude’s in Nick’s name.
A Funeral Mass was held 10:30AM, Friday, February 18, 2022 at St. Thomas More Catholic Church – 940 Carmichael Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27514. Rite of Committal will be scheduled at a later date.
To send sympathy gifts to the family or plant a tree in memory of Nicholas Paul Szydlek, please visit our tribute store.
This writeup heavily based on the obiturary published by the Donaldson Funeral Home & Crematory. For the complete, excellent obituary see https://www.donaldsonfunerals.com/obituary/Nicholas-Szydlek
OCRA Board Meeting Minutes – January 25, 2022
Below you will find a link to the PDF for the OCRA Board Meeting Minutes for January 25, 2022.
Laurie Meier, N1YXU
OCRA Secretary
OCRA Board Meeting Minutes – January 25, 2022
OCRA Club Meeting Minutes – January 10, 2022
The OCRA Club Meeting Minutes from January 10, 2022 are shown below. You can also download a PDF version of the minutes by clicking the link below.
OCRA Club Meeting Minutes – January 10, 2022
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OCRA Club Meeting Minutes – January 10, 2022
- Check-ins (21) – Dave Snyder
KU4GC, KA5ETS, KO4DHJ, KO4GJO, KI4RAN, N8BR, KM4MBG, KI4MXP, N1LN, KN4JYP, W4ORD, KF4PAB, KX4P, KR4UB, NA4VY, N2XZF, KD4YJZ, N1YXU, W4FK, KN4VXB, and W4SAR
- Election Results and Introduction of New Board – Dave Snyder, W4SAR
- As of noon today, the balloting for the OCRA 2022 election closed. From the 93 eligible members in good standing, 46 responses were received. The voting was a unanimous support of the slate presented by the nominating committee. The 2022 OCRA Board is shown below.
- President – Bruce Meier, N1LN
- Vice President – Bill Bischoff, N8BR
- Secretary – Laurie Meier, N1YXU
- Treasurer – Dan Eddleman, KR4UB
- Board Members at Large (Will be serving the first year of two-year terms)
- John Green, KX4P
- Aurora Toennisson, KN4VXB
- Lad Carrington, W4ORD
- Board Members at Large (will be serving the last year of two-year terms)
- Wilson Lamb, W4BOH
- Karen Snyder, KD4YJZ
- Dee Ramm, KU4GC
- Dave expressed his thanks to the membership for their confidence in him presiding as president for the last several years. He also stated that it is time to end the dynasty and get new leadership for the club. Dave turned the meeting over to Bruce, N1LN, as the new club president.
- As of noon today, the balloting for the OCRA 2022 election closed. From the 93 eligible members in good standing, 46 responses were received. The voting was a unanimous support of the slate presented by the nominating committee. The 2022 OCRA Board is shown below.
- New President – Bruce Meier, N1LN
- Bruce thanked Dave for all he has done as OCRA president and made sure that Dave knows emails and requests won’t stop coming Dave’s way! Also, Bruce thanked the other members of the outgoing board for all their efforts and support of the club.
- Reflecting on the number of people that are in the club, it’s clear that OCRA is made up of the members and not the officers. Bruce is looking forward to working with the new officers, board members, and the membership. It is great to have new people with new ideas for the club. He is looking forward to working with everyone and truly encourages comments, both positive and negative. Constructive criticism and suggestions are welcome.
- Topics for tonight’s meeting –
- Comments from the new president about focuses for 2022
- Reports from the club officers
- Repeater update
- Comments from the board members at large
- General discussion from the membership
- Goals for 2022 –
- Prior to being elected, some of the nominees have had conversations on various topics. There will be no surprises to the membership. Over the next months and weeks, we will move forward as a group to implement the club’s plans. And, we will strive to have fun while we’re doing it!
- One of the first activities that will take place is setting up regular, recurring board meetings.
- Recently, the club has seen a renewed focus on activities and membership engagement. Some examples of this include fox hunts and ham pi. [Many thanks to Aurora for her initiative in getting these activities started and continuing.] More ideas will be discussed at the next club meeting. There are a lot of very intelligent, talented folks who are OCRA members. We need to tap into their expertise, expand on current activities, and get more membership engagement in ham radio related activities.
- Ensuring documentation and policies are updated will be an area that officers and board members will focus on. For example, we need to ensure our insurance policies are up-to-date and that 501c documentation is completed and submitted. As work in these areas is completed, updates will be reported back to the membership.
- Training is definitely an area that will receive quite a lot of focus.
- Vice-President’s Report – Bill Bischoff, N8BR
- Bill is looking forward to serving as Vice President and appreciates the vote of confidence from the membership.
- He thanked Dave for being the OCRA President in a very difficult time over the last few years as we have all navigated through the impacts of the pandemic. Bill also recognized the good job that Lad did as Vice President. It will be good to have Lad continue to serve on the board to talk with regarding his prior responsibilities.
- Bill is looking forward to working with the entire membership. One of his primary focuses will be to work closely with Bruce to ensure that the club’s goals are achieved and to step-in as president, if needed, in Bruce’s absence.
- Earlier in the day, Bill had the opportunity to talk with John Green (KX4P). One of the things they discussed was getting regular programs back on track for the membership meetings. John didn’t only agree with the priority of getting regular programs, he also volunteered to present a program at an upcoming meeting and work to get additional programs planned. Now, that’s a great example of the enthusiasm of club members coming together and working toward a common goal!
- The framework of how we do programs and have speakers will ensure that all members will be able to get the program information. We may have programs in person, virtually (e.g. on Zoom), and/or on the repeater.
- Treasurer’s Report – Dan Eddleman, KR4UB
- Dan thanked Dave Snyder for his leadership as OCRA president. As the Treasurer, he also thanked all the members for keeping their dues current, which supports the club’s solvency.
- Every month before the membership meeting, a message is sent that includes information with dues notice. There are a record number of members who are paying their dues. In fact, many are paid through 2023!
- OCRA has a current membership of 103. As of this month, 92 members have dues that are current. There are 5 members who need to renew, and there are 6 people who have expiring memberships.
- Dues are the sole source of income that supports OCRA expenses. It is interesting to understand some of the expenses and the number of paid members needed to fund these expenses.
- Fixed expenses for the club include items such as insurance and safety deposit box costs. To cover the fixed expenses, it takes about 85 dues paying members.
- There are additional operating expenses that we have on a regular basis. One of these expenses is support of our website. Due to the challenges we’ve had over the last few years dealing with the pandemic, we have had to come up with new ideas to ensure the ability to reach members. For example, we pay for a Zoom license that allow us to have virtual meetings. These type of operating expenses (website and Zoom license) are funded through the dues from about 22 members.
- Thank you to all the OCRA members who are diligent in keeping their dues current. Your support is truly appreciated.
- Secretary’s Report – Laurie Meier, N1YXU
- Laurie is looking forward to serving on the board and appreciates the confidence from the membership to serve as secretary.
- Board meetings will be held via Zoom for the near future (as we continue to deal with the impacts of COVID). Prior to the board meetings, an agenda will be sent to all OCRA members with an invitation to join the meeting. As stated previously in tonight’s meeting, the success of the club is dependent on everyone’s input and support.
- Minutes from the monthly membership meetings and board meetings will be distributed to OCRA members via email and will also be published on the OCRA website. A link to the meeting minutes will be sent to all OCRA members to ensure everyone is up-to-date on activities and discussions.
- Repeater Report – Nick Szydlek (KA1HPM) and Dan Eddleman (KR4UB)
- Nick is out of town and not able to attend the meeting. Dan provided the repeater update.
- Dan stressed that a written OCRA repeater vision and plan will be key as we go forward.
- For example, in the past, the club has had several formal relationships with many groups (e.g. neighboring counties, Emergency Management agencies). These relationships will need to be revisited, written documents updated, and ongoing communications be re-established.
- Our multi-county frequency agreement will also need to be revisited and refreshed. Back in 2010, each county had identified the primary and secondary repeater frequencies. Simplex frequencies for emergency communications and training nets had also been defined. Members of the various county clubs were encouraged to be familiar with the frequency plan, have their radios programmed, and be able to quickly move to various frequencies based on our emergency communications plan.
- Both Dan and Bruce commented that we need to have more net training, trained net control operators, and the ability to quickly test our emergency communications plan.
- We have had challenges filling open Emergency Coordinator positions. The Orange County EC position is currently unfilled.
- Board Member Comments –
- Wilson Lamb (W4BOH) would like to see more focus on technical activity and learning as a group. Our members have a broad scope of knowledge which can be tapped into for teaching and demonstrations. This doesn’t mean that we all need to be experts; however, we can all be more educated to know more about the fundamentals of amateur radio. Wilson would also welcome resuming social gatherings even in smaller groups and also resuming Field Day as an in-person event.
- Dee Ramm (KU4GC) thanked the outgoing board members for their work and welcomed the new officers and board members. He is looking forward to working with everyone and believes that 2022 will be a great year.
- Aurora Toennisson (KN4VXB) is happy to be part of the board. She will continue to run the ham pi meetings and to organize the fox hunts, as long as there is continued interest. Aurora would also like to focus on helping new hams get started and find out what areas they would like to learn more about. If members have additional interests, perhaps satellite communications, please let Aurora know.
- John Green (KX4P) mentioned that this is not the first time he has served as a board member, and he is happy to serve again. John commented on how much he enjoys the club since the membership has such diverse interests. He is looking forward to putting programs together and hopes to get many suggestions and also volunteers for the programs.
- Lad Carrington (W4ORD) thanked everyone who contributed to and attended the recent Christmas party. He is looking forward to continuing to serve on the board and is happy to hand-off the Christmas party responsibilities to Bill. Lad volunteered to be led a program that will focus on go-kits and preparation for deployments.
- Karen Snyder (KD4YJZ) is looking forward to working with everyone on the board.
- Dave Snyder (W4SAR) thanked everyone for the comments made about his leadership as president. He will continue to be a very active member of the club and will be the liaison with the Efland Baha’i Center for meetings when we are able to meet in-person in the future.
- General Discussion- Bruce, N1LN
- Bill (KI4RAN) gave special thanks to all the outgoing and incoming board members for all their work. He also agreed with the need for a communications plan that all members would have readily available to move to pre-programmed frequencies when needed.
- Bob (W4FK) thanked everyone in the club for welcoming him even before he moved from Florida. Bob had been participating in OCRA meetings via Zoom. He has volunteered to be net control this coming Saturday, January 15. [Bob – Welcome to the area! And, thank you for jumping in and being net control!]
- Doug (KA5ETS) is familiar with a program that a solar scientist has given with a prediction that this solar cycle may be one of the largest. Doug will follow-up to see if the program might be able to be presented at an upcoming OCRA meeting.
- Meeting Closed and Check-outs – Bruce, N1LN
Respectfully submitted,
Laurie Meier, N1YXU, Secretary
OCRA Board Meeting Minutes – October 20, 2021
ORANGE COUNTY RADIO AMATEURS
Executive Board Meeting – October 20, 2021 – 7:30 pm
Platforms Utilized: Zoom.
MEETING CONVENED AT 7:30 PM
OFFICERS PRESENT: W4SAR David, (President); KR4UB Dan, (Treasurer); N8BR Bill, (Secretary); KD4YJZ Karen, (Board Member); N1LN Bruce, (Board Member); W4ORD Ladd, (Vice President); KU4GC Dee, (Board Member); W4BOH Wilson (Board Member).
W4SAR (Dave): President’s Report- Welcome. Call to order.
W4ORD (Lad): Vice President’s Report- There will be a state-wide AUXCOMM meeting at 10:30 this Saturday. It will be presented on WebEx. Unfortunately he is unable to use WebEx on his current computer.. He will try to get a copy for the club.
KR4UB (Dan): Treasurer’s Report– In the recent past Dan tallied our fixed expenses which are in fact indicators of how the club is doing financially. Fortunately our income is staying ahead of our expenses so in general, we are doing okay but not by much. At present all of our income is derived from dues. There have been no hamfests or donated equipment sales. We are down about $600 from repeater expenses in Chatham County. So, in sum we have to be careful with spending.
- A key purpose of the club treasury balance is to have sufficient funds available to cover the costs of keeping OCRA repeaters on the air. Although the treasury balance is sufficient to buffer expenses, the present dues income level would not be enough to rebuild the balance as repair costs could be significant.
- This opened a discussion about the current $12.00 per member, maximum $25.00 per family membership dues rate which have not been increased since the club’s inception in 1991. $12.00 in 1991 dollars would now be $24.17 in 2021 dollars per an inflation rate calculator.
That said, the big question facing us now is whether or not we should consider raising dues.
N1LN (Bruce) suggested that the issue of dues be discussed at the next club meeting. W4BOH (Wilson) suggested that dues be raised to $20.00.
N1LN (Bruce): Net Operations in OCRA. The club desperately needs to expand the number of people who are involved in managing its nets. For many folks these nets have become time proven essential components of our community’s emergency preparedness strategies. It was further recommended that we identify a reasonable number of folks who are willing and interested in doing the job and then develop an educational program to train them. Perhaps it would be useful for potential net leaders to visit the homes of experienced net operators in order to learn the ropes. Bruce hopes we can develop an action plan at the next meeting. Wilson recommended that we contact potential net operations people via email. Bruce will draft an email for that purpose.
W4ORD (Lad): Progress with Holiday Dinner – The Exchange Club we have used for this occasion in past years is closing down for renovation. There is no specific information on when they plan to reopen.
David will check on the availability of St. Matthews” Episcopal Church and the Baha’i Center. I am continuing to solicit responses from club members concerning their plans to attend. This will be discussed at our next meeting.
KR4UB (Dan): Announcements – Rosie from NASA has agreed to give her presentation. Dan has provided her with possible dates.
W4SAR (David): Dave reported that Dick Boyton has passed away and his son Bob has donated a substantial amount of his equipment to the club for the purposes of either use or sale. I believe we should put as much as possible into our equipment loan program. We will provide final forms for that enterprise upon request as well as a final list of included items following a complete inventory. At this point the following items are included: Yaesu FT 450D HF and 6M transceiver, Yaesu 790 R-E UHF/VHF module, Yaesu 60-R VHF/UHF HT, 2 Samlex power supplies (7.5A and 5.5A), Realistic DX440 receiver, VHF/UHF mag mount antenna, Heil Pro-Set headphones, ARL morse code oscillator, Heathkit GR81 receiver, jumpers, insulators and various other hardware. Marketing these items was discussed. Dave will write a thank you letter to Bob.
W4SAR (David): Elections -Our election for club officers will be held in January. .
N1LN (Bruce): Bruce raised the question to Dan that since the combined Zoom/Radio Net/Meetings have become an integral part of OCRA social gatherings, what would it take for additional operators/stations to perform that task?
Dan replied that the combined radio net / zoom audio connection is being performed by equipment originally purchased for other use, much of it being commercial quality, including a Roland multiple sound input mixing/level control mini studio monitor and a W2IHY microphone/radio control & audio matching unit, external line impedance matching / level attenuators, audio isolation transformers worth over $800.00 to interface to the Zoom computer. He has searched the internet for more cost effective equipment to no avail. Bruce commented not to forget having a ham station with antennas sufficient to be able to hear and talk to all on UHF & HF is required.
“Plan B” would be to revert back to separate radio nets, followed by a separate Zoom social gathering conference if Dan is not available. More discussion with action items needs to occur at future meetings.
Further discussion followed with Dan adding that with club elections coming up, the alternate names on the club’s bank accounts, safety deposit and post office box key holders may need to be updated. G-Suite will be used to store this vital record information as well as names of alternate members who have administrative access to the club internet and website accounts.
Meeting adjourned at 9:12 PM
WLB/s
OCRA Club Meeting Minutes – October 11th, 2021
ORANGE COUNTY RADIO AMATEURS
Monthly Membership Meeting – October 11. 2021 – 7:00 pm
Platform Utilized: OCRA 442.150 UHF Repeater supplemented with Zoom
NET CONTROL AND MEETING OFFICIATION: N1LN (Bruce) Opened the meeting by inviting member check-ins. The following stations responded either by repeater or Zoom.
ATTENDEES: N8BR, Bill; KA5ETS, Doug, KO4DHJ, Ken; KU4GC, Dee; W4BOH, Wilson; KW4JY, Calvin; KF4PAB, Lenore; KM4MBG, Jack; N2XZF, Paul; KN4VXB, Aurora; KZ1X, Steve; N7RYN, Ryan; KR4UB, Dan; W4ORD, Lad; KR4AM, Mark; KB1WE, Wayne; KO4JAW, Mark; W4FK, Bob; N1LN, Bruce
OFFICER REPORTS
- N1LN (Bruce – representing W4SAR): Our agenda will consist of check-in via repeater and zoom, officer reports, fox hunt update, show and tell from members, open discussion and check-out. Bruce queried the group for additional agenda items. In response.N8BR asked that the Christmas party be added to the agenda so that the format of that event and its location could be finalized. Dan, KR4UB made an announcement about the Tarwheels Bikefest scheduled for October 23rd.
- KR4UB (Dan) -Treasurer’s Report: 94 members’ dues are current, 3 need to renew, and 4 memberships are expiring. In the past 12 months 26 new members have joined 13 of whom are newly licensed. In addition, 25 memberships have expired. The various methods for paying dues were discussed. All are designed to make the process easy.
- W4ORD (Lad) – Vice President’s Report: Indicated that he wanted to get a consensus from the membership in order to decide on the location for the Christmas party and whether it would be catered or pot-luck. Please let him know 1. If we should have the event, 2. If it should be catered or potluck, and 3. where it should take place. He also needs to know if members will attend or not.
- KR4UB (Dan) – Repeater Report: Based upon comments received from many members of our club who use the 145.230 repeater at the Pittsboro Fire Tower site, the machine there appears to be functioning well. Based on this outcome we may not have to move it from this site as was previously planned.
5. KM4MBG (Jack) – DFMA Update. Our 6 meter repeater has been active from TV Hill in Durham for a number of weeks. The signal is so strong it has
actually interfered with another repeater in Virginia making it necessary to change our crystals so the machine frequency could be moved to 53.61 Mhz. All members are invited and welcome to join us there.
DFMA members are also pondering what the club activities will be like in November and December. Many discussions have focused on whether the club is ready to return to face-to-face meetings and activities. Further, the club is contemplating the use of gift cards and door prizes to attract new program participants. In sum, lots of little things are going on to attract new membership.
6. KM4VXB (Aurora) – Fox Hunt Update: There has been no Fox Hunt yet because of the weather. We will have to use the rain date which is October 30 at 10:00 am for the on-foot event and 12:30 pm for the vehicle format. Please email Aurora if you are planning to attend the event so she can arrange for adequate staffing.
7.. PROGRAM – Show and Tell Presentations on equipment and technology relevant to Fox Hunting: Rainbow Sniffer (KN4VXB), Small Loop Square (KR3AM), offset attenuator and mixer (W4BOH), Fox Hunting in MA and 8 switch attenuator (N1LN), and Hand Fox Fnder (KB1WE). Relevant links to the various topics are presented below.
https://arrowantennas.com/main/fhl.html
the offset attenuator:
https://arrowantennas.com/main/4ofha.html
A DIY offset attenuator:
http://www.homingin.com/joek0ov/offatten.html
Mon, Oct 11, 2021 at 8:22 PM Aurora Toennisson <wayferny@gmail.com> wrote:
equested by Bruce, here’s links from our on the air discussion.
Here’s the rainbow kit I made: https://www.rainbowkits.com/product-page/sdf-1-kit
Here’s the Handi-finder: https://www.handi-finder.com/
https://www.qsl.net/ve2emm/index.html#index
https://www.geontech.com/download/white_papers/AOC_Challenge_GEON.pdf
http://www.dhawke.com/kq1lweb/documents/rdf.pdf
https://arrowantennas.com/main/fhl.html
The offset attenuator:
https://arrowantennas.com/main/4ofha.html
A DIY offset attenuator:
http://www.homingin.com/joek0ov/offatten.html
On Mon, Oct 11, 2021 at 8:22 PM Aurora Toennisson <wayferny@gmail.com> wrote:
As requested by Bruce, here’s links from our on the air discussion.
Here’s the rainbow kit I made: https://www.rainbowkits.com/product-page/sdf-1-kit
Here’s the Handi-finder: https://www.handi-finder.com/
On Mon, Oct 11, 2021 at 8:21 PM infomet2003 via groups.io <infomet=embarqmail.com@groups.io> wrote:
https://www.geontech.com/download/white_papers/AOC_Challenge_GEON.pdf
http://www.dhawke.com/kq1lweb/documents/rdf.pdf
8. VOICE POLL AND CHECK-OUT: Prior to exiting the Zoom Meeting attendees were asked to respond to a voice poll designed to collect data on members’ intentions to attend the annual Christmas Dinner, their preferred location for the event, desire for full- service vs, potluck, and whether Covid 19 vaccination should be required for member participation. Data from this instrument will be used in final planning for the event. Poll results: 10 yes, 5 maybe, 2 will not attend.
Meeting Adjourned at 8:46,
WLB/DE.s.
Upcoming General Class October 28th
> Subject: Please publicize my upcoming General Class Oct 28
> Folks:
>
> I would appreciate your help getting the word out about my free weekly General Class licensing course on Zoom beginning Thursday, October 28 and running through Thursday, January 13 (9 sessions plus 3 weeks off for the holidays in November and December.) Sessions will start at 6:30 pm eastern time, and run 3 hours. These are the classes sponsored by the National Electronics Museum that we have been holding for years. Please publicize this with anyone you know that you think would be interested. Those wishing to sign up should email me at roland.anders@comcast.net.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Rol, K3RA
OCRA Club Meeting Minutes – September 13th, 2021
ORANGE COUNTY RADIO AMATEURS
Monthly Membership Meeting – September 13. 2021 – 7:00 pm
Platform Utilized: OCRA 442.150 UHF Repeater supplemented with Zoom
NET CONTROL AND MEETING OFFICIATION: W4SAR (Dave) Opened the meeting by inviting member check-ins. The following stations responded either by repeater or Zoom.
W4BOH (Wilson); N8BR (Bill); KO4DHJ (Ken); W4FK (Bob); KA5ETS (Doug); N4JQR (J.R.); W4ORD (Lad); N1QYW (Steve); KA1HPM (Nick); KN4JYP (Kathy); KM4MBG (Jack); N1LN (Bruce); KF4PAB Lenore; W4SAR, (Dave); KR3AM (Mark); KJ4VWG (Sam); K4SAR (Joe); KO4SZE (Bob); KU4GC (Dee); KR4UB (Dan); KD4YJZ (Karen) N1YXU (Laurie); KN4VXB, (Aurora).
W4SAR (President): called for Officer Reports.
- W4ORD (Vice President): No formal report, but emphasized that he is waiting for a directive from the executive board indicating whether members prefer a catered dinner or a member provided potluck at the club Christmas party. David, our president, responded with a promise that he would poll the executive board and forward a decision so that plans may be made well in advance of the event.
- KR4UB (Treasurer): 85 dues payments are needed to cover fixed expenses for the club (insurance, post office box, safety deposit box, website, Zoom and Sera, etc). As of this meeting, 93 members are current, 4 need to renew and 4 are expiring. In the last 12 months 22 new members’ dues will cover recruiting and member retention expenses (website and zoom). 26 new members have joined with 11 being newly licensed. 25 memberships have expired over the past 12 months.
- KR4UB (Repeater Manager Orange County): no report. KA1HPM (Repeater Manager Chatham County): Not much going on. We still need permits for towers in Siler City. Receiving on Tower Rd. is good and we have had some long distance check- ins.
- KM4MBG (Jack) and KF4PAB (Lenore) represented the DFMA. Lenore reported that the club’s repeater for 6 meters had been moved to a new location.
- W4SAR (David) reported that the club’s efforts to sponsor amateur licensing examinations had again become active after significant slow-down due to covid-related issues. He was pleased to report that Bob, KO4SZE had passed his Technician’ license test. David is hoping to begin regular examination sessions soon.
In addition, David announced that there was nothing else on the formal agenda for the current meeting and suggested that he will be calling a meeting of the club’s executive board members shortly.
General Discussion:
KN4VXB (Aurora) described the up-coming Fox Hunt and her presentation. Planning for this event is largely based on lessons learned from a former one that occurred last year. It is scheduled to take place on October 9th at 10:00 am. In case of rain it will be moved to the same time slot on October 23rd. There will be both an on-foot event as well as one requiring the use of vehicles to hunt the fox(es). All potential attendees for this event should plan to bring picnic lunches. In addition, those who are interested in constructing their own radio for the hunt should plan on participating in a “virtual build day” that will be held on September 25th.
W4ORD (Lad) is looking forward to “in person” meetings so food will be available.
K4SAR (Joe) is a new zoom attendee who reported that recent activity on the 12 and 10 meter bands has been picking up due to the increase in sun spots
W4SAR (David): Meeting Adjourned and repeater secured at 8:30
WLB/s
OCRA Club Meeting Minutes – August 9th, 2021
Monthly Membership Meeting – August 9. 2021 – 7:00 pm
Platform Utilized: OCRA 442.150 UHF Repeater & Zoom
NET CONTROL AND MEETING OFFICIATION: N1LN (Bruce) opened the meeting by inviting member check-ins.
RADIO & ZOOM ATTENDEES: N1LN (Bruce), N8BR (Bill), KO4DHJ (Ken), W4BOH (Wilson), KU4GC (Dee), KG4CFX (Chris), KW4JY (Calvin) KM4MBG (Jack), KI4MXP (Gerald), KX4P (John), W4ORD (Lad), W4OFZ (Bill), WB4OSU (Sherri), NA4VY (Dave), N1YXU (Laurie), KK4RRT (Michael), KJ4VWG (Sam), N8VNR (Kevin), KN4VXB (Aurora), N1QYW (Stephen), KR3AM (Mark), KR4UB (Dan), .N4JQR (J.R.), KO4BHX (Ben),KG4GRY (Eli), KS4DOW (Kadar), KE0KHD (Sam), KI4TRD (Allan), KW4JY (Charles), NC4CD (Charlie), KM4IWI (Wild Bill), K4SAR (Joe), KN4DRN (Michael)
ANNOUNCEMENTS: KR4UB (Dan) gave the treasurer’s report relating to club dues. Club dues are OCRA’s income to pay club expenses. 91 members dues are current, 6 need to renew, and 2 are expiring soon. Of the 25 new members this year 11 are newly licensed. Membership for 25 folks is expiring.
(1) N1LN (Bruce) Regarding membership dues, it is easy to pay. There is a PayPal link in Dan’s membership listing email and on the club website or you can send a check to the OCRA Post Office Box, or give cash to Dan.
(2). Dave (W4SAR) was not able to join the net tonight. Bruce mentioned the need for Volunteer Examiners to help in the upcoming August 28 VE session. Contact Dave if you can assist.
(3) Bruce also explained that Net controls are needed for the weekly Saturday morning AuxCom net. Mark (KR3AM) and Doug (KA5ETS) have been net controls most of the time. This is not a hard thing to do and would be excellent practice should we ever be needed to assist in public service activities or emergency situations. Check with Mark – I am sure he would be happy to provide assistance to new (want to be) Net Control members. Should you be interested in being a future net control, the script can be found on the OCRA website at this URL:
https://ncocra.org/WordPress_v1/orange-county-auxcomm-training-net-script/
or, on the NCOCRA website, click on REPEATERS, then click on AuxComm Training Net Script.
KN4VXB (Aurora): The next Fox Hunt will be held on Oct 9. There will be 2 events – (1) on foot (2) driving from your car. Be sure to sign up.
W4ORD (Lad): Announced that the Holiday party has been put on hold for now due to the ever changing Covid environment and potential recent increase in risks.
N1LN (Bruce) Many of us will now be moving to the NASA presentation to be held on Zoom. Dan (KR4UB) sent numerous emails with the login information, however, if anyone needs that info – I will pass it along here on the net. The info was passed along.
The net closed around 19:25 with everyone checking out.
BM/DE/WB/s
Combined OCRA/DFMA Meeting with NASA Presentation – Monday August 9th
Given the latest CDC information regarding the spread of Covid-19, now containing the Delta variant, the OCRA Board of Directors has made the decision to postpone the return in August to our regular in-person meetings at the Efland Baha’i Center.
The upcoming club meeting on Monday August 9th will be a special meeting as a combined OCRA/DFMA Over-the-Air Club Net and Zoom Meeting with NASA guest presentations, Monday evening August 9th beginning at 7pm.
Note the following time and agenda changes for this special meeting:
- The Over-the-Air Club Net check-in will begin at 7pm instead of the usual 7:30 on the 442.150 mHz repeater to get callsigns & names of the meeting attendees for the club meeting minutes and any brief club announcements.
- The OCRA Zoom Video Conference will available starting at 6:45pm for any last minute video/audio testing by attendees, check-ins by attendees not having UHF radio capability, and for all to join in for the NASA guest speaker presentation starting at 7:30pm .
- Our guest speaker will be Al Feinberg, the Strategic Content and Media Advisor for NASA Space Communications & NASA Television Headquarters in Washington, D.C.
- The radio net will be secured at 7:30pm and then the Zoom video conference will continue with speaker introductions.
- Questions any attendee would like to ask the presenters can be posted in the Zoom chat window.
Al’s presentation will be on “Space Communications in Support of NASA”.
The timing of these presentations could not be better as November 9, 2021 will be the 20th Anniversary of International Space Station contact from Barbara Pedersen’s science class room at Chapel Hill Phillips Junior High School. Club member Barbara, KE4JZM was instrumental in the planning, coordination with NASA and with additional club volunteers, the building of the amateur radio station in her science class room that was used for the successful contact.
The Zoom access link, Login ID & password has been distributed by email to all OCRA members and to the DFMA members via the DFMA Link Newsletter email list.
OCRA Club Meeting Minutes – July 12th, 2021
SEE LATER NOTICE regarding postponement of OCRA in-person meetings due to resurgence of COVID. The August OCRA club meeting will continue with the 442.150 Net & Zoom video conference format.
ORANGE COUNTY RADIO AMATEURS
Monthly Membership Meeting – July 12, 2021 – 7:30 pm
Platforms Utilized: OCRA UHF Repeater
Minutes
MEETING CONVENED AT 7:30 PM.
MEMBER CHECK-IN: Attendees: N1QYW, Steven; N8BR, Bill; KR3AM, Mark; W4SAR, Dave; KD4YJV, Karen; W4ORD, Lad; KU4GC, Dee; N1LN, Bruce; KR4UB, Dan; N4JQR, J.R.; KN4VXB, Aurora; KO4DHJ, Ken; KA5ETS, Doug; NA4VY, Dave; KI4RAN, Bill; KZ1X, Steve; KM4MBG, Jack; WA2JLW, Roy; N1YXU, Laurie; KM4WXW, Jeff; WB4OSU, Sherri; KO4RQN, James.
OFFICERS’ REPORTS:
W4SAR (David-President): We will begin our meeting with reports from club officers.
W4ORD (Lad-Vice President): Nothing important to report except that we are still waiting for a decision on the Christmas party. We have also been clearing trees to replace antennas that fell during our last storm.
KR4UB (Dan-Treasurer): As of this month 95 members are current, 4 need to renew and 5 are expiring. In the last 12 months 27 new members have joined with 13 being newly licensed and 20 memberships have expired.
N8BR (Bill-Secretary): No report.
W4SAR (David-President):
(1) The Baha’i Center has analyzed the progression of the pandemic and decided that face-to-face meetings will again be permitted to take place at their facility. Therefore, at the August 9th general club meeting OCRA will re-assume its traditional face-to-face format for the first time in over 18 months. Also, as a special surprise we have been informed that the NASA group who recently cancelled last month’s presentation, will be available to deliver their program at the August meeting. Technology for their planned presentation will be managed by KR3AM (Mark). At this point in the planning process we anticipate that there will be both a live presentation as well as one on Zoom for folks who are unable to attend the meeting in person. Hopefully this plan will mark the end of our dependence on the repeater-based club meetings that prevailed during the pandemic.
(2) Volunteer Examiner (VE) Sessions will be re-established face-to-face on August 28th at 10 a.m. Club members with VE accreditation from the ARRL are encouraged to participate in this important club activity. Additional information will be forthcoming in August.
(3) Field Day Success Early reports suggest that club field day efforts from home stations were successful. Club participation was great with scores submitted by 37 operators representing many levels of experience using a variety of modes, equipment, antennas, and operating styles to collectively earn a preliminary total of 30,576 points.
Numerous comments from participating operators indicated that field day provided a myriad of learning experiences, a superb opportunity for development of operating skills and an enhanced appreciation and understanding of how communications technologies can be used in ways that bolster human safety and well-being.
(4) Meeting Adjourned – 8:40 p.m.
WLB/DE/s
.
2021 OCRA/DFMA Field Day Participants ARRL Score Tally
2021 OCRA/DFMA Field Day ARRL Score Totals
The following has been compiled from information provided by OCRA/DFMA Field Day Participants.
ARRL Score Calculation Formula
[CW-CNT x 2 = CW Pts] [SSB-CNT x 1 = SSB Pts] [Digi-CNT x 2 = Digi Pts] ARRL Score = [CW + SSB + Digi Pts Sum) x Pwr_Mult + Bonus Points]
| Callsign | First | Station | Station_Band_Mode | Bonus_Activity | FDay Class | CW QSO | CW Mult | Digi QSO | Digi Mult | SSB QSO | SSB Mult | Pwr Mult | QSO Score | Bonus Score | ARRL Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N4GF | Roger | Port able | 40M | Education, Emerg Pwr, Public Loc, Youth Ops, Web Submit | 1, A, B | 4 | 2x | 5x | 40 | 370 | 410 | ||||
| WA2JLW | Roy | Home | 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, CW | Emerg Pwr, Web Submit | 1, E | 82 | 2x | 5x | 820 | 150 | 970 | ||||
| WB4OSU | Sherri | Home | 40M, 20M, WSJT, PSK31 | Emerg Pwr, W1AW Msg, Web Submit | 1, E | 79 | 2x | 5x | 790 | 250 | 1040 | ||||
| N2XZF | Paul | Home | 20M, 10M, SSB | Emerg Pwr, Web Submit | 1, E | 32 | 1x | 2x | 64 | 150 | 214 | ||||
| KX4P | John | Home | 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, CW, SSB, WSJT | Web Submit | 1, D | 239 | 2x | 2x | 956 | 50 | 1006 | ||||
| WA4PSC | Howard | Home | 160M, 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, CW | W1AW Msg, Web Submit | 1, D | 1369 | 2x | 2x | 5476 | 150 | 5626 | ||||
| N4JQR | J R | Home | 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, 6M, SSB | W1AW Msg | 1, D | 60 | 1x | 2x | 120 | 50 | 170 | ||||
| W1KES | Keith | Home | 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, 6M, WSJT | Web Submit | 1, D | 114 | 2x | 2x | 456 | 50 | 506 | ||||
| W4KIL | Andy | Home | 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, 6M, WSJT | W1AW Msg, Web Submit | 1, D | 213 | 2x | 2x | 852 | 150 | 1002 | ||||
| KR4UB | Dan | Home | 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, WSJT | W1AW Msg, Web Submit | 1, D | 426 | 2x | 2x | 1704 | 150 | 1854 | ||||
| N4KW | Pete | Home | All, CW, SSB, not sure about 2023 | Web Submit | 1, D | 356 | 2x | 163 | 1x | 2x | 1750 | 50 | 1800 | ||
| N8BR | Bill | Home | 80M, 40M, 20M, CW | W1AW Msg, Web Submit | 1, D | 641 | 2x | 2x | 2564 | 150 | 2714 | ||||
| KO4DHJ | Ken | Home | 80M, 40M, 20M, SSB | Web Submit | 1, D | 45 | 1x | 2x | 90 | 50 | 140 | ||||
| AJ2X | Mark | Home | 40M, 20M, 15M, SSB | W1AW Msg, Web Submit | 1, D | 207 | 1x | 2x | 414 | 150 | 564 | ||||
| KY4HU | Charles | Home | 40M, 20M, SSB, WSJT | W1AW Msg, Web Submit | 1, D | 123 | 2x | 5 | 1x | 2x | 502 | 150 | 652 | ||
| K1ZW | Larry | Home | 20M, 15M, 10M, SSB | Web Submit | 1, D | 14 | 1x | 2x | 28 | 50 | 78 | ||||
| KZ1X | Steve | Home | All, CW, aka W4EZ | Web Submit | 1, D | 123 | 2x | 2x | 492 | 50 | 542 | ||||
| KO4TXN | Steve | Home | All, SSB | W1AW Msg, Web Submit | 1, D | 160 | 1x | 2x | 320 | 150 | 470 | ||||
| KJ4VWG | Sam | Home | All, SSB | W1AW Msg, Web Submit | 1, D | 73 | 2x | 81 | 2x | 454 | 150 | 604 | |||
| N1LN | Bruce | Grp_1 | Captain, 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, CW, aka NC4KW | W1AW Msg, Web Submit | 1, D | 1351 | 2x | 486 | 1x | 2x | 6376 | 150 | 6526 | ||
| N1YXU | Laurie | Grp_1 | All, SSB, aka NC4KW | 1, D | 486 | 1x | 2x | 972 | |||||||
| W4BOH | Wilson | Grp_2 | Captain, All, CW | Web Submit | 2, D | 623 | 2x | 37 | 1x | 2x | 2566 | 50 | 2616 | ||
| KN4VXB | Aurora | Grp_2 | All, SSB, aka W4BOH | 2, D | 36 | 1x | 2x | 72 | |||||||
| NA4VY | David | Grp_3 | Captain, All, SSB, WSJT | Web Submit | 2, D | 222 | 1x | 2x | 444 | 50 | 494 | ||||
| W4ORD | William | Grp_3 | All, 20M, SSB | 1, D | |||||||||||
| David | Grp_3 | 20M, SSB | 1, D | ||||||||||||
| KE4UVJ | Don | Grp_3 | 20M, SSB | 1, D | |||||||||||
| Nan | Grp_3 | 12 | 1x | 12 | |||||||||||
| K4SAR | Joe | Grp_4 | Captain, 80M, 40M, 15M, 10M, SSB | Emerg Pwr, W1AW Msg, Web Submit | 1, E | 491 | 1x | 2x | 982 | 250 | 1232 | ||||
| KI4RAN | William | Grp_4 | All, SSB | 1, D | |||||||||||
| KD4YJZ | Karen | Grp_5 | All, SSB, PSK31 | 1, E | 105 | ||||||||||
| KU4GC | Dee | Grp_7 | Captain, 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, SSB, WSJT | W1AW Msg, Web Submit | 2, D | 309 | 2x | 40 | 1x | 2x | 1316 | 150 | 1466 | ||
| KF4PAB | Lenore | Grp_7 | aka KU4GC | 2, D | |||||||||||
| KM4MBG | Jack | Grp_7 | aka KU4GC | 2, D | 2x |
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Orange County Radio Amateurs & Durham FM Association ARRL Submission Score to date : 35,560
CW QSO Total Count : 5,009, Digi QSO Total Count : 1,850, SSB QSO Total Count : 2,601, Bonus Activity Points : 3,520
34 Hams on 2021 Field Day N1LN Sign Up List, 15 Group Station Participants, 18, Home Stations, 1 Portable Station
ARRL Submission needed to move score to “Orange County Radio Amateurs & Durham FM Association” for an additional 0 points
| Callsign | First | Station | Station_Band_Mode | FDay Class | Score Value | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WB4OSU | Sherri | Home | 40M, 20M, WSJT, PSK31 | 1, E | KN4VXB, KN4GUM Q's included | |
| KX4P | John | Home | 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, CW, SSB, WSJT | 1, D | ||
| WA4PSC | Howard | Home | 160M, 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, CW | 1, D | ||
| N4JQR | J R | Home | 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, 6M, SSB | 1, D | ||
| W4KIL | Andy | Home | 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, 6M, WSJT | 1, D | ||
| KA5ETS | Douglas | Home | 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, CW, WSJT | 1, D | ||
| KR4UB | Dan | Home | 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, WSJT | 1, D | ||
| N4KW | Pete | Home | All, CW, SSB, not sure about 2023 | 1, D | ||
| N8BR | Bill | Home | 80M, 40M, 20M, CW | 1, D | ||
| AJ2X | Mark | Home | 40M, 20M, 15M, SSB | 1, D | ||
| KY4HU | Charles | Home | 40M, 20M, SSB, WSJT | 1, D | ||
| K1ZW | Larry | Home | 20M, 15M, 10M, SSB | 1, D | ||
| KZ1X | Steve | Home | All, CW, aka W4EZ | 1, D | ||
| KJ4VWG | Sam | Home | All, SSB | 1, D | ||
| N1LN | Bruce | Grp_1 | Captain, 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, CW, aka NC4KW | 1, D | N1YXU Q's included | |
| N1YXU | Laurie | Grp_1 | All, SSB, aka NC4KW | 1, D | ||
| KN4VXB | Aurora | Grp_2 | All, SSB, aka W4BOH | 2, D | KN4VXB Q's to be included in sites visited | |
| NA4VY | David | Grp_3 | Captain, All, SSB, WSJT | 2, D | W4ORD, N4UBH, KE4UVJ, KN4GUM, KN4VXB Q's included | |
| W4ORD | William | Grp_3 | All, 20M, SSB | 1, D | ||
| David | Grp_3 | 20M, SSB | 1, D | |||
| KE4UVJ | Don | Grp_3 | 20M, SSB | 1, D | ||
| Nan | Grp_3 | KN4GUM Q's to be included in sites visited | ||||
| K4SAR | Joe | Grp_4 | Captain, 80M, 40M, 15M, 10M, SSB | 1, E | KI4RAN Q's included | |
| KI4RAN | William | Grp_4 | All, SSB | 1, D | ||
| W4SAR | Dave | Grp_5 | Captain, All, SSB, WSJT, PSK31 | 1, E | KD4YJZ Q's included | |
| KD4YJZ | Karen | Grp_5 | All, SSB, PSK31 | 1, E | ||
| Butch | Grp_6 | At Elmer's Stn in Virginia | ||||
| KU4GC | Dee | Grp_7 | Captain, 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, SSB, WSJT | 2, D | KF4PAB, KM4MBG Q's included | |
| KF4PAB | Lenore | Grp_7 | aka KU4GC | 2, D | ||
| KM4MBG | Jack | Grp_7 | aka KU4GC | 2, D | ||
| W3AHL | Steve | 80M__SSB | Captain, 80M, SSB | |||
| WA4UJM | Wally | 80M__SSB | 80M, SSB | |||
| K2RRT | Mark | 80M__SSB | ||||
| Henry | 10M_Barn | |||||
| Chris | Multiple_Stn | 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, 6M, SSB, WSJT, PSK31 | ||||
| W4AEN | Ed | Multiple_Stn | 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, SSB, WSJT | |||
| Bruce | Multiple_Stn | |||||
| KC1TWR | Tim | 80M, 40M, 20M, 10M, 6M, SSB | 5 | |||
| KM4MDR | John | PotLuck & Food Services | ||||
| KN4JYP | Kathy | |||||
| KO4JAW | Mark | |||||
| Loren | ||||||
| KO4BHX | Ben | |||||
| KN4QCC | Onda | |||||
| KM4DNU | Peter | |||||
| KM4IWI | William | |||||
| AK4W | Ed | |||||
| KN4VXC | Leo | |||||
| KA5JUJ | Martin | |||||
| KD4UCZ | Charles | |||||
| W4CFO | Jim | |||||
| KK4BPH | Mike | |||||
| Tad | ||||||
| KM4NOU | Joel | |||||
| K4FD | Dan | |||||
| KN4ZHP | Mike | |||||
| KN4QBZ | Fred | |||||
| This is a test of the | All Others listed below that I haven't heard from ... are submissions planned? | |||||
| K4ITL | Danny | |||||
| N4KF | Ken | |||||
| KO4CSW | Robert | |||||
| W4OFZ | Banks | |||||
| KE4YRB | Joline | |||||
| KE4NBB | Ted | |||||
| KM4WHL | Sarah | |||||
| N1GMR | Kimberley | |||||
| KG4NEL | Jim | |||||
| John | ||||||
| KI4MXP | Gerald | |||||
| Elaina | ||||||
| AC4RD | Ken | |||||
| Mike | ||||||
| N4ZAK | Robert | |||||
| KO4GJO | Boyd | |||||
| KK4NNQ | Mark | |||||
| Robley | ||||||
| K4BMW | Brian | |||||
| N4SJW | John | |||||
| N4JHH | Joseph | |||||
| KK4VUR | John | |||||
| WB1AJJ | Jonathan | |||||
| Michael | ||||||
| KD4JWF | Jose | |||||
| KO4ICM | Doug | |||||
| Dan | ||||||
| Phyllis | ||||||
| KR3AM | Mark | |||||
| Peter | ||||||
| KO4RON | Ron | |||||
| KO4KNI | Brian | |||||
| KJ4TTU | Steve | |||||
| KO4KNJ | Michael | |||||
| KA2SBC | Kathleen | |||||
| KA1HPM | Nick | |||||
| KO4KPS | Crystal | |||||
| N7RYN | Ryan | |||||
| WA4AHR | Dewey | |||||
| K4OGP | Chris | |||||
| Jeffrey | ||||||
| KA2DEW | Tadd | |||||
| KK4RRT | Michael | |||||
| Zachary | ||||||
| Jeremy | ||||||
| Cynthia | ||||||
| KW4JY | Calvin | |||||
| N1QYW | Steve | |||||
| KG4PFB | Lisa | |||||
| KO4RQN | James | |||||
| K3VSA | Woody | |||||
| KG4JGJ | Joseph | |||||
| AI4MW | Tommy | |||||
| None-CP | Cortney | |||||
| W1ST | Stephen | |||||
| KO4SZE | Bob | |||||
| KO4TVC | Diana | |||||
| W4FK | Bob | |||||
| CS-10-21 | Clint | |||||
| JRW-01-93 | Jason | |||||
| . | Brad | |||||
| Dwayne | ||||||
| KN4EOO | Rick | |||||
| KO4UFU | Eldon | |||||
| Andy | ||||||
| Vance | ||||||
| W7GBP | Michael D | |||||
| KK4JGT | Terry | |||||
| Keith | ||||||
| KN4DRN | Michael | |||||
| Matthew | ||||||
| Kadar | ||||||
| KO4ERV | Ed | |||||
| WQ8U | Mac | |||||
| W4LMW | David | |||||
| KF4O | Randy | |||||
| KD8FQM | Robert | |||||
| N3LTV | Doug | |||||
| K4LIF | Dan | |||||
| KK4MEG | Albert | |||||
| KY4OU | Christopher | |||||
| KV7D | Adriano | |||||
| Cornelius | ||||||
| KQ4DCE | John | |||||
| KW4KZ | Charles | |||||
| KW4KZ/XYL | Mary | |||||
| K4KGM | Kevin | |||||
| K2IX | Barry | |||||
| W4AIR | Daryl | |||||
| KE4MAC | Kelly | |||||
| Janet | ||||||
| KY4SX | Domingo | |||||
| KO4QLU | Patrick | |||||
| Mark | ||||||
| KN4BTI | Mark | |||||
| KM4WXW | Jeffrey | |||||
| KQ4GKB | Nyi | |||||
| K4AAI | Jay | |||||
| W4AG | Stan | |||||
| Sandy | ||||||
| KN4VDO | Devin | |||||
| Patricia | ||||||
| Bill | ||||||
| K6LZL | Wyatt | |||||
| KQ4IWB | Mike | |||||
| W4QL | Bob | |||||
| N0US | Paul | |||||
| KF4WBK | Chip | |||||
| WF4ZT | John | |||||
| WA1QCE | Ron | |||||
| KK4VOU | Ted | |||||
| K1KPD | Kevin | |||||
| Greg Isley | Greg | |||||
| KQ4BYL | Jody | |||||
| David | ||||||
| Ted | ||||||
| KF5CYN | Derek | |||||
| KQ4JDJ | Jere | |||||
| KB3ZD | Glenn | |||||
| KQ4PEC | Mike | |||||
| KW4EE | Kevin | |||||
| KQ4PES | Kent | |||||
| Charles | Charles | |||||
| KQ4FCA | Alice | |||||
| Kevin | ||||||
| NC4CD | Charlie | |||||
| Bob | ||||||
| Bob | ||||||
| Clint | ||||||
| KS4VX | Roger | |||||
| Eddie | ||||||
| KE4QOZ | Joanna | |||||
| Jean | ||||||
| Rosemary | ||||||
| Betsy | ||||||
| Janet | ||||||
| KB1WE | Wayne | |||||
| NE4U | John | |||||
| KG4QOF | Dan | |||||
| KE4HIH | Rhett | |||||
| Dee Ann | ||||||
| April, Emerson, Liam | ||||||
| FD Event Cost | ||||||
| FD Anonymous Extra Payment | ||||||
| Steven | ||||||
| Ken | ||||||
| Detlev | ||||||
| Greg | ||||||
| KE4DKM | George | |||||
| Anthony | ||||||
| KB4DKY | Scott | |||||
| Susan | ||||||
| Jack, Sr | ||||||
| James | ||||||
| Bob | ||||||
| KM4LCW | Gretta | |||||
| Jimmy | ||||||
| Charles | ||||||
| Rickey | ||||||
| Nick | ||||||
| CD Anonomous Extra Payment | ||||||
| CD Event Cost | ||||||
| CD Refund | ||||||
| CD Cancel | ||||||
| FD Refund | ||||||
| FD Cancel | ||||||
| Tom | ||||||
| Kevin | ||||||
| N2JET | Shawn | |||||
| WB2UJL | Ernie | |||||
| Ronald | ||||||
| KF4COP | Jim |
Awaiting ARRL Submission Data from the following Stations
________________________________________________________________________________________________
ARRL Submissions for Operators Participating in the Group Stations listed below covered by the Station Captain Submission
Q’s by each Operator listed if data has been provided
| Callsign | First | Station | Station_Band_Mode | FDay Class | CW QSO | CW Mult | Digi QSO | Digi Mult | SSB QSO | SSB Mult | Pwr Mult | QSO Score | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| N1LN | Bruce | Grp_1 | Captain, 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, CW, aka NC4KW | 1, D | 1351 | 2x | 486 | 1x | 2x | 6376 | N1YXU Q's included | ||
| N1YXU | Laurie | Grp_1 | All, SSB, aka NC4KW | 1, D | 486 | 1x | 2x | 972 | |||||
| W4BOH | Wilson | Grp_2 | Captain, All, CW | 2, D | 623 | 2x | 37 | 1x | 2x | 2566 | KN4VXB, KN4GUM Q's included | ||
| KN4VXB | Aurora | Grp_2 | All, SSB, aka W4BOH | 2, D | 36 | 1x | 2x | 72 | KN4VXB Q's to be included in sites visited | ||||
| NA4VY | David | Grp_3 | Captain, All, SSB, WSJT | 2, D | 222 | 1x | 2x | 444 | W4ORD, N4UBH, KE4UVJ, KN4GUM, KN4VXB Q's included | ||||
| W4ORD | William | Grp_3 | All, 20M, SSB | 1, D | |||||||||
| David | Grp_3 | 20M, SSB | 1, D | ||||||||||
| KE4UVJ | Don | Grp_3 | 20M, SSB | 1, D | |||||||||
| Nan | Grp_3 | 12 | 1x | 12 | KN4GUM Q's to be included in sites visited | ||||||||
| K4SAR | Joe | Grp_4 | Captain, 80M, 40M, 15M, 10M, SSB | 1, E | 491 | 1x | 2x | 982 | KI4RAN Q's included | ||||
| KI4RAN | William | Grp_4 | All, SSB | 1, D | |||||||||
| KD4YJZ | Karen | Grp_5 | All, SSB, PSK31 | 1, E | 105 | ||||||||
| KU4GC | Dee | Grp_7 | Captain, 80M, 40M, 20M, 15M, 10M, SSB, WSJT | 2, D | 309 | 2x | 40 | 1x | 2x | 1316 | KF4PAB, KM4MBG Q's included | ||
| KF4PAB | Lenore | Grp_7 | aka KU4GC | 2, D | |||||||||
| KM4MBG | Jack | Grp_7 | aka KU4GC | 2, D | 2x |
________________________________________________________________________________________________
OCRA Club Meeting Minutes – June 14, 2021
ORANGE COUNTY RADIO AMATEURS
Monthly Membership Meeting – June 14, 2021 – 7:30 pm
Platforms Utilized: OCRA 442.150 UHF Repeater and Zoom Video Conference
Minutes
MEETING CONVENED AT 7:30 PM.
MEMBER CHECK-IN: W4SAR (David), KU4GC (Dee),), KM4MBG (Jack), KF4PAB (Lenore), KZ1X (Steve), KO4DHJ (Ken), KA5ETS (Doug), KD4YJZ (Karen), KR4UB (Dan), KA1HPM (Nick), K4SAR (Joe), KN4BTI (Mark), KO4GJO (Boyd), N1YXU (Laurie), W4ORD (Lad), KX4P (John), KN4GUM (Nan), KN4VXB (Aurora), N4JQR (J.R.), KR3AM (Mark), WB4OSU (Sherri), NA4VY (Dave), N1LN (Bruce) and W4BOH, Wilson.
PRESIDENT’S REPORT – W4SAR (David): There will be no formal president’s report tonight. However, we will give club officers an opportunity to make brief comments as necessary and we will then conclude our planning for field day. W4ORD (Lad) – Nothing important to report. We are just finishing preparations for field day and awaiting club consensus on the preferred format for our Christmas party. KR4UB (Dan) – 94 club members are current with their dues. Membership for 15 has expired, membership for another 7 is expiring soon, and 5 need renewal.During the past 12 months we have acquired 24 new members,12 of whom are newly licensed. There is no recent news about our repeaters. Noteworthy is the fact that the towers are going up in Chatham County and there will probably be opportunities for more new ones. Over all I believe there is a good outlook for the future.
FIELD DAY UPDATE:
1. N1LN (Bruce) – There will be another session dealing with N1MM software on June 19th at 10:30 am. This will be held on a new zoom account. We have tested the latest N1MM software and discovered glitches in the scoring tools. This was reported to the N1MM folks and elicited an immediate response. We will test the revision needed. Regarding logs, it is important to submit a document in Cabrillo format and to have proper instruction on that task prior to sending off logs. Be sure to bring your questions to the Saturday meeting.
2. KR4UB (Dan) – Commented on digital modes. Thanks to Bruce for building the spreadsheet on field day interests and intentions. 11 members attended the meeting on digital formats. Attendees will be using various digital modes. We are making good progress in getting educated for the event.
3. W4SAR (David) – Many folks will be using N3FJP software for station control and logging in field day. The program is very user friendly. We are available for answering questions as needed.
4. N1LN (Bruce) – Inquired about individual plans for hosting and emphasized the need to get the information out to prospective attendees.
5. W4ORD (Lad) – indicated that he had hosting opportunities for both ssb and digital operating and was waiting to hear from anyone interested.
GENERAL COMMENTS:
KR4UB (Dan) – The cancellation of our planned NASA presentation was due to a death in the family of one of the presenters and computer problems experienced by the other. We are working to reschedule this important event. Several options are being explored. Hopefully It will be possible to bring the speakers to our usual meeting spot at the Efland Baha’i Center. If this option eventuates, we will have to arrange for a wifi hotspot to be installed so the presentation can be distributed to those attending our meetings virtually.
For future planning purposes Dan requested the meeting attendees as they checked out of the net meeting to answer two questions:
How many would attend a rescheduled NASA presentation?
- Of the 26 attendees at the meeting (several late arrivals missed the poll) 23 expressed that they would attend.
- Given the late breaking (day of the event cancellation) two methods were used to notify attendees:
- direct mailing of members
- posting on groups.io.
What is the preferred and most relied on method of notification?
- 14 preferred exclusive direct mailing notification (in this case from the OCRA mass emailer of the NASA cancelation).
- 9 stated they received the direct mailing and some also received a group.io email notification of the posted cancelation notice.
- One concern expressed with groups.io was that a late breaking notificcation may not be received in a timely manner based on the various notifications options .i.e. the daily digest (of the previous day postings sent the morning of the next day), or no email notification.
W4ORD (Lad) – Will be presenting poetry readings at the Colonial Inn in Hillsboro on a regular basis and invites all club members to attend.
NA4VY (Dave) – Wants to discuss with club members various ways to interface digital ham gear with N3FJP software.
W4SAR )Dave) – The Efland Baha’i Center has announced the facility will re-open and be available for club meetings to resume. There are already events scheduled for July, precluding a meeting then and also might be too soon after Field Day, but it will be available in August. As a cost cutting measure, the internet access has been dropped, but WiFi hotspot access via cell phone can be used given the close proximity to a cell tower. In addition to use of a hotspot for presentations, the club still wants to maintain the Zoom capability at the club meetings for members unable to attend in person.
MEETING ADJOURNED at 8:35 P.M.
WLB/DE/s