Membership Meeting Minutes – October 10, 2015
Stillwater Amateur Radio Association
1618 Pine Street West
Stillwater, Minnesota 55082
President: Joe KCØOIO
The meeting was called to order at 9:03 AM.
Secretary’s Report: Steve KAØOBI
The general meeting minutes from the September 12, 2015 meeting are posted on the website. Please report any corrections to: Secretary@radioham.org
Treasurer’s Report: John N5JLZ
Beginning Balance: 9/1/2015 $2,382.00
Income: $315.00
Expenses: $17.95
Ending Balance: 9/30/2015 $2,679.05
50/50 Drawing:
14 tickets at $2 each were sold at the meeting for a total of $28. The winning ticket drawn was held by Mary NØDXH.
Education and Training: Bob WØGAF (not present)
Fall General Classes are continuing to be held at the Stillwater Library. The VE session is currently scheduled for November 12, 2015 in Auditorium C at Boutwells.
Activities & Events: Dave WØOXB
Thursday Night Eye Ball Sessions are held at Stillwater Public Library at 6:00 CT.
White Rock Tri-State Special Event September 18-19-20, 2015 – White Rock, SD. Eight club members participated including the town’s Mayor Rudy. The team made about 450 contacts which was excellent considering the poor band conditions. All the QSLs were sent out last week. The team used a 160’ center-fed Zepp antenna and also operated on a vertical for 15, 20 and 40 meters. This was the club’s 5th time operating from White Rock since the event was started in 1999.
Remembering the Edmund Fitzgerald Special Event Oct 30-31-Nov 1, 2015 – Split Rock State Park, Beaver Bay, MN. It’s time to make your reservations at the Mariner Motel in Silver Bay. Advance notice of details has been sent to QST & ARRL. This is the club’s 11th year for this event and will be marking the 40th year since the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald on Nov 10, 1975.
MAP – Dave WØOXB
Member Assistance Program – This program will be in limbo once Dave leaves town from Nov 11th to Dec 11th.
Handihams: Pat WAØTDA & Dave WØOXB
Pat thinks the soonest he can retire now is December 2015. He will be attending the Board of Directors meeting on October 15th to offer some helpful ideas about the future. Pat was recently awarded the ARRL Presidents Award by Kay Craigie for his accomplishments and dedication to the Handiham program.
The remote stations WØEQO and WØZSW are once again on the air. They are available to SARA members via remotehams.com.
HEART (Handiham Equipment Assessment Repair & Tracking) – volunteers are still needed to help.
Washington County ARES: John KAØHYR (not present)
The annual Simulated Emergency Test (SET) was held on Saturday, October 3rd. The focus was on providing communications for the partners. They used voice and FL digi to pass messages. Most reports were good with some coverage holes around St. Mary’s Point.
Check the web site www.mnwashcoares.org regularly for current events, net schedule, and other items of significance.
Digital Net: Joe KCØOIO
SARA DIGI Net will return October 11th at 7:00 PM.
Two meter ragchew is held every Wednesday night at 9:00 CT. You can find us at 147.060 MHz 114.8 Hz Tone.
160 meters SARA Top Band Ragchew is at 1.966 MHz. They operate every night except Tuesday & Thursday at 20:00 CT.
Newsletter & Website: Pat WAØTDA & Dave WØOXB
Thanks to Pat and Dave for putting together the newsletter! Additional contributors are needed. The deadline for submissions is the last Saturday of the month.
DX News: Mike NØODK
SARA outgoing DX QSL service – SARA will package and send outbound DX QSL cards to the ARRL Bureau for SARA members who are also ARRL members. Please include a copy of your QST mailing label showing your ARRL member number with your QSL package. Give your cards to Bob WØGAF.
Get the latest DX news by subscribing to the ARRL DX News. Also check out www.ng3k.com for DX & Contest Calendar.
Programs:
Oct: Mike Paskeuric NØODK – Fun with DXing
Nov: John Dean KØJDD – APRS
Dec: Amateur Radio Trivia Challenge
Jan: S.W.E.E.P.
Feb: Keith AGØH & Mike WAØKKE – SSTV + DSSTV
Old Business:
SARA coffee mugs are now on sale for $3 each and will be available at the Split Rock event.
The SARA Oval Sticker/Decals are on sale for $1 each or you get a free one when you renew your membership for 2016.
New Business:
None.
Good of Association:
There will be a SEMARC Meeting on Oct. 27th at Zion Lutheran Church in Cottage Grove.
The ARRL Amateur Radio Parity Act – become active in helping to get this passed by sending a letter to ARRL which will be sorted with others and hand delivered to your State Representative. Please do not send your letters directly to a Representative as it will be seriously delayed and lose the intended impact. Joe KCØOIO will bring a printer next time to help members customize a letter and print it out. There are two YouTube videos that explain this act in more detail. “The Amateur Radio Parity Act: Separating Fact from Fiction” (5:44) and “HRN213: Parity in the Senate on HamRadioNow” (1:12:23).
Show Us Your Shack:
A photo of Henry KØHAS shack was featured.
The business part of the meeting adjourned at 9:53 AM.
Program: “Fun With DXing” – presented by Mike Paskeuric NØODK
Mike gave a terrific overall view of how to get involved with DXing. Expensive equipment and elaborate antenna systems are not required. The key seems to be in correct timing, knowing where and when to search the bands, and perfecting your listening technique.
There are many different helpful resources available from online websites, forums, blogs, magazines and newsletters to find out how to make the most of your time in making contacts with other countries. There are also local clubs that are willing to educate newcomers to the techniques that need to be used to get the most enjoyment and best results from DXing.
The total presentation program has been posted on the club website.
Meeting was adjourned at 11:02 AM.
Meeting attendance: 27