THIS CLASS IS FULL, PLEASE CHECK BACK FOR THE NEXT SCHEDULED CLASS!
SKYWARN is a program developed and taught by National Weather Service (NWS) meteorologists and consists of trained weather spotters who report severe and hazardous weather to help in the weather warning process.
SKYWARN Spotter reports provide vital “ground truth” to the National Weather Service.
The information Spotters provide immensely helps the NWS Forecasters make better/more informed forecasts and helps them to warn others of impending dangers or hazards.
A SKYWARN class will be held on Saturday, March 18, 2023 from 10:00 AM to 12:30 PM at the Broward County Emergency Operations Center, 201 NW 84 Ave., Plantation, FL 33324.
Anyone interested in public safety and communications during extreme weather events is welcome to attend.
There is no cost to attend this training, however, you MUST pre-register for the class. To register, you are required to email your Full Name, Address, eMail and phone number to Carol Sjursen, Broward County SKYWARN Coordinator at CarolSjursen@gmail.com.
#SKYWARN
CQ CQ CQ Calling all hungry hams!
We just completed our first Winter Field Day in 1 and a half years, thanks to unseasonably cold weather and COVID restrictions in 2021, and 2022. We are so grateful that a few hams with culinary expertise stepped up to the “plate” (pun intended) and offered their gracious services to the WFD Canteen.
We wish to thank Gerald (Jerry) Deitch W4LST, Erik Olmer W4EJO, and Melanie Fernandez KJ4VCT for a most pleasant and “fruitful” shopping excursion on Friday the 27 th which provided the much desired food for the hungry, hungry hams. We bought thick, succulent burgers, tasty Nathan’s Hot Dogs and Primo sweet and hot sausages, along with Potato Salad, and assorted beverages, cookies and snacks for mass consumption. On Saturday, we were joined by the beautiful Joanna Cummings N2QFT and her helpful mate James (Dick) Cummings KD2DXQ as well as again, Jerry Deitch W4LST who helped bring the goodies and set up the breakfast bar and coffee table. (A shout out and thanks to Carol Sjursen KJ4AWB who provided and donated her Corey coffee maker to the club for a supply of never ending hot coffee. Thanks Carol.)
Melanie Fernandez KJ4VCT manned the grill the first part of the morning for lunch prep and was joined with Joanna Cummings N2QFT who carried on the grilling while Melanie went to pick up Rhonda Pitone KJ4FSH and Hope Smith WB3ANE, who needed transport to the event. We were a well-oiled, compatible crew, who saw to it that all were fed, including some unexpected guests who happened along.
Ricki Witte KJ4FSJ , our Hospitality Chair, also brought her dynamite chili, and helped hostess our event as well as keep track of welcoming people who came to play and visit and learn. Jerry W4LST brought his homemade Beef Stew for the dinner portion and Melanie Fernandez KJ4VCT provided Italian Meatballs for lunch.
The gorgeous weather provided a beautiful backdrop to our WFD efforts and made the grilling a delight as opposed to our hot JUNE field days. We are looking forward to the June FD and invite any of those who love being in the kitchen to join us for the fun and festivity of taking care of others. Your service is needed and much appreciated as many hands make light work. There is a job for any who choose to help in setting up, cooking, serving or breaking down. Thank you GCARA for being the most welcoming club I have ever had the pleasure of belonging to!
Till June………….
Melanie
Our board set out to achieve 6 things this year:
1. Set up / breakdown an amateur radio field station category 3O, limited to 100 watts
… in the rain! Thanks to our setup team, the success of the operation provides a measurable testament to your achievement.
Left to right Setup Manager Al Lisler NT4AL, Erik Olmer W4EJO, Digital Station Manager Rick Eaton KD4HGR, Forrest Smorag KA4JHM, Bill Mercer KE8TPU, Safety Manager Ben Echavarria N7BBE, Phone Station Manager Halfmoon Silva AJ4JG, CW Station Manager / Operator MVP Dan Vasilca AI4WW.
2. Successfully make multiple contacts on all bands using CW, phone and digital modes
… “Aloha!”
Robert Ligum (KN4WII)made a SSB contact with Hawaii on 10 Meters, as an excellent start to our weekend… and from there we got almost a complete clean sweep working all bands and modes that we set out to work.
Satellite Manager Jan Welten (KK3W) made satellite contacts look easy with his home brew tracking system.
CW Station Manager / Operator MVP Dan Vasilca AI4WW did his thing! Huge shout out to Dan for his efforts handling the entire CW station planning, setup and operation and for all of the contacts he made!
Digital Station Manager – Rick Eaton KD4HGRalso did his thing! Rick had some equipment problems to troubleshoot, but he was prepared and was part of the setup, overnight and breakdown crews!
3. Correctly log the designated exchanges during the operational period
Thanks to Dan (AI4WW) and Rick (KD4HGR) for getting the computers setup ahead of time and to everyone who pitched in helping log on the SSB station.
4. Ensure event is enjoyable to club members and guests
We got Hope on the air, again!
Did I mention Liggy worked Hawaii!!!
SSB Setup Manager Al Lisler (NT4AL) gave a great presentation about a SDR receiving system he is looking to donate for the club’s use. We were excited for Al to participate in this event as his first one on American soil and the first one as an American citizen. Please welcome your new countryman when you see him.
#5 Provide food for guests
Melanie (KJ4VCT) and Gerry (W4LST) … also did their thing, and newcomer Jo Cummings (N2QFT) contributed substantially to the event.
5. Use event to expand awareness of amateur radio
Thanks to Carol for all of her efforts coordinating with her contacts within Broward County to get the pavilion donated to us for the event. She worked on the PIO committee and helped with the social media leading up to and covering the event including working with Tom photographing the event.
Tom Savoca (K9TJS) was too humble to take a photo of himself, but because of Tom, I was able to give the high school student at our event our Instagram information, and he’s going to help keep his whole family updated about our events in the future now.
The PIO committee also received media coverage from Margate Talk.
These photos and anecdotes scratch the surface demonstrating the fruits of hard work that our members put into planning and executing the event. Thanks again to everyone, and now we move onward to Summer Field Day!
73,
Erik, W4EJO
The Winter Field Day mission is to encourage emergency operating preparedness among amateur radio operators and is the perfect time for the public to come out and learn more about ham radio and the opportunities to be involved in community service.
The Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association will observe the annual Winter Field Day exercise on Saturday, January 28 & Sunday 29th, 2023 at Quiet Waters Park, 401 South Powerline Rd in Deerfield Beach, Florida.
We are excited to announce a “Show and Tell” area designated for club members and guests to have a fun, productive interactive experience. This area will be for club members to bring equipment you’d like to show off, testing equipment, presentations, swap / sale items etc. Please email president@w4bug.org if you have ideas for how you would like to use this area so we can plan accordingly.
The Palmetto Amateur Radio Club, Southeast Florida Traffic Net and Broward County ARES/RACES will be participating.
Saturday:
7a – noon setup
12noon – 2pm lunch
2pm – thru Sunday 2pm operating on the radios
4pm – “Show and Tell” A multiband WebSDR which is going to allow Hams and Radio Listeners to monitor local activities by Al, NT4AL
6pm – “Show and Tell” Net Control training hosted by the SEFTN
Sunday:
12-2pm – lunch
Sat thru – Sunday 2pm operating on the radios
2pm – 6pm breakdown
RSVP is requested (but not required) so we will know how many to prepare for.
Click Here for the Winter Field Day Rules
Meeting starts at 7:30pm, Zoom Room Opens Prior to Meeting for socializing.
Join Zoom Meeting
Click this link to join our meeting – https://us02web.zoom.us
Meeting ID: 861 4515 0594
Passcode: 464119
Our guest speaker: Samuel Greenfeld
Sam will be talking about: The Flipper Zero (https://flipperzero.one/) is a multifunction tool that can interact with a variety of devices. It also has become a bit infamous on social media due to the potential for misuse.
This talk looks at what a Flipper Zero can and cannot do, as well as some potential future improvements.
Samuel Greenfeld is an Amateur Radio operator who has been licensed for 30 years. He volunteered in a few shelters in New York City after the September 11 attacks. He is involved with Broward ARES/RACES, and is also is a member of Coral Springs CERT.
Samuel currently works for a cybersecurity startup doing product development.
Sunday February 26, 2023, 7pm: GCARA Club Dinner at Wings Plus
PLEASE RSVP using the form below so we can let the restaurant know roughly how many people are coming.
You do not have to be a member or a HAM operator to join our monthly club dinner!
Location:
Wings Plus
9880 W Sample Rd
Coral Springs, FL 33065
Club Dinner RSVP
General Meeting Minutes
1) Call to Order
Erik Olmer (W4EJO) called to order on ZOOM the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association’s regular meeting at 19:50 Hrs. on January 24, 2023. A quorum (20% / 14 members) was present with 19 members (see Appendix A).
2) Secretary’s Report – Ben Echavarria (N7BBE)
No notes for November meeting.
3) Treasurer’s Report – Erik Olmer (W4EJO)
Checking Bal: $8,261.79
Stripe balance $19.12 showing in transit
WFD income to date $280.00
4) VE Status Report – Jeff Stahl (K4BH)
Jeff Stahl (K4BH) reported that we will lose our testing site due to Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) moving out of the area. November 2022 will be the last session for now. If the club wants to continue test sessions, we need to find a site. Also looking into “Remote Testing”.
5) Repeater Report – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)
All repeaters are up and running. HF remote repeater needs more users. We will give 6 months more for use and see if we should keep it running or shut it down.
6) Website Report – Tom Savoca (K9TJS)
Working on streamlining the web site and making it more user friendly. Members only list will be open.
7) Announcements
a) Next Club Dinner – February 26, 2023, at 19:00
9880 West Sample Road
Coral Springs, FL 33065
b) New Club Address
Please be advised that we have a new address.
Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association
7378 W. Atlantic Blvd #147
Margate, FL 33063
c) Last Board Meeting
For more information, go to www.w4bug.org
d) Jeff Stahl (K4BH)
Orlando Hamcation Tickets are $25.00
February 10-12 2023
8) Speaker: Erik Olmer (W4EJO)
Winter Field Day January 28-29.
0700 to 1200 hours Station Setup on Saturday. Will be operational at 1400 hrs.
Will shut down 1400hrs on Sunday.
At 4:00 pm on Saturday, Alan Lisler (NT4AL) will give a presentation on SDR receiving.
At 6:00 pm on Saturday Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) will host the SEFTN traffic net for the first time.
There will be a “show and tell” area for the public and members. Radios, antennas and equipment of
various kinds.
There will be food each day. At $10.00 per day per person.
This event will be enjoyable for both members and guests.
We should all be here to have fun.
9) Adjournment
(W4EJO) called adjourned the meeting at 8:45 pm
A. Appendix A
1) Members Present
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) Jeff Stahl (K4BH) Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)
Erik Olmer (W4EJO) Tom Savoca (K9TJS) Ricki Witte (KJ4FSJ)
Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) Robert Ligum (KN4WII) Nigel Richards (KB4F)
Dirk Basting (N4AN) Mike Sam (KF4ZW) Carol Sjursen (KJ4AWB)
Allan Karden (N4ALK) Ben Echavarria (N7BBE) Joe McGee (NX4T)
Jerry Deitch (W4LST) Barry Porter (KP1PA) Alan Lister (NT4AL)
10) Guests Present
The GCARA continues its planning for Winter Field Day on 1/28 and 1/29 at Quiet Water’s Park, Bald Eagle Pavilion.
If you have questions or would like to hear more about the details, tune into the Broward County Emergency Preparedness Net tonight (Thursday) at 7PM, 146.610 PL 110.9 -.6 offset. Checkins do count for that net, and I’d love to hear from you.
We are excited to announce a “Show and Tell” area designated for club members and guests to have a fun, productive interactive experience. This area will be for club members to bring equipment you’d like to show off, testing equipment, presentations, swap / sale items etc. Please email president@w4bug.org if you have ideas for how you would like to use this area so we can plan accordingly.
The only rules that apply to this area are;
- Antennas need to fit into a 25’ square
- HF transmissions need to be coordinated with the 3 stations that will be running during the event so we don’t interfere with them
If you would like to help with any of the logistics transporting equipment to and from the sight, setup, breakdown or food prep, please email me at president@w4bug.org so we can get you onto the roster and plan accordingly.
Thanks to the Palmetto Amateur Radio Association, Broward ARES / RACES and the SEFTN for their efforts supporting and helping execute this event.
Looking forward to a great Winter Field Day, 73,
Erik Olmer, W4EJO
President
Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association
Email – president@w4bug.org
Call / text – (754) 444-1187
CQ, CQ, CQ – Calling all hams……….
The old Board and the new Board of GCARA want to wish everyone a very happy, healthy and prosperous Holiday Season and New Year! We are grateful to serve a club like GCARA, seeing that it grows in educational opportunities, volunteer opportunities, and expanding our communication footprint to cover the tri-county area. We stand as YOUR representative in the ham community to generate the help to the community that hams are fundamentally best at doing.
We learn, we help, we serve, and we give back to the community that needs us in our daily contributions of practicing our craft and developing new ways to communicate and most of all, volunteering our time and talents to those who need our services.
We are currently preparing for our annual practice of emergency communication at our Winter Field Day at Quiet Waters Park on January 28th and 29th, 2023. All are welcome to participate, learn and grow in your craft as we have fun working together to communicate in emergency situations. There is a job for EVERYONE.
Many hands make light work. If you want to ‘throw your hat in the ring’, kindly contact President Elect Erik Olmer W4EJO, this year’s Winter Field Day Chairman at President@w4bug.org or call 754-444-1187.
Enjoy your Holidays, whatever they may be, and God Bless everyone.
Signing off for 2022, 73,
Melanie, Jeff, Ricky, Ricki, Erik, Charlie, Tom, Ben, and “Liggy”.
