CQ CQ CQ, this is KN4VDW calling CQ.
According to our bylaws, we will hold our annual meeting every November. That is when we either reconfirm the existing board or elect a new board member.
This is the first year we hold elections since the club is under new management. A lot of things have changed since then.
It was time to freshen up our brand. So, we designed a new crisp and clear logo to represent our work. The old logo has done its job and done it well. It was time to bring the club into the 2021 century.
You may or may not have heard of the PARC Hoppers by now. That is another new development in our club. After a new board was formed and the bylaws had been rewritten and approved by the membership, we put our heads together and discussed what we could do to create more interest. That’s how we came up with the PARC Hoppers. Get it? LOL – PARC instead of PARK? Well, we first started to organize mini Field Days once a month and planned to pick a different park in Broward for each Field Day. We started with the name HAM in the Park, but that didn’t sound as good as it could. Then Mike Sam (KF4ZW) came up with PARC Hoppers—and the rest is history.
So stay tuned, and check our event calendar regularly to find out where you can join us next.
Another change we made was the payment of the club dues. Your membership renewal is now when your initial payment was made; at least, that is true for new members. Since we had no complete records of active members, we had to do a lot of research, but I think we found what we could and now have a member list that we can build upon. And that is your cue; we need to spread the word that the Palmetto Amateur Radio Club is still around despite some rumors. Why would somebody join our club? Unlike other clubs, we offer regular club meetings on Zoom, have repeaters at a great location, have monthly Field Days, and work together with the Boy Scouts of America. The only way for us to continue to offer all these amenities is to attract new members. Remember that our club is supported only through membership dues and donations.
All our repeaters are located in Aventura. More information about our and other repeaters in Broward County can be found here. We have a total of 6 repeaters now. Let’s start with our workhorse: 146.375 MHz PL 91.5
This repeater is the only one on the air right now. The other repeaters are misconfigured or have some defect; we are working on getting them back online. Unfortunately, more often than not, money is involved in the maintenance of these repeaters, and as mentioned above, the only income for the club is membership dues. One repeater was returned to us a couple of months ago. It was in repair. We need to return it to the repeater site and get it back online. We also received two donations. Gary Michalosky (KI4WPI) donated a GMRS repeater to the club, and Mike Wolf (K2HXC) donated a HAM UHF repeater. Both repeaters are working; we need to reprogram them before we can put them on the air.
We are still planning a PARC Hoppers Field Day for the beginning of October. I have not picked a park yet. Of course, on the 3rd, which is in two days, we have our club meeting, and on October 21, we are at Camp Elmore supporting our Boy Scouts at JOTA.
I hope everybody has a great rest of your Sunday and an even better week ahead.
73 de KN4VWD