1) Call to Order
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT)called to order the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association’s Board meeting at 14:48 EDT (18:48 UTC) on October 10, 2021, on ZOOM. A quorum was present with six board members.
2) Old Business
a) Next Club Dinner
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) suggested the next Club Dinner for December 5, 2021, at 7:00 pm. Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) will provide a form on our website for people to RSVP. Joe McGee (NX4T) moved to accept December 5, 2021; Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) second. Motion moved unanimously.
b) Status of EchoLink – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)
Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) reported that due to the issues with the .610 repeater, he could not make any progress with EchoLink.
c) Status of WinLink Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) reported that the HD on the laptop for WinLink is still not working, and he will have to replace the HD.
d) Winter Field Day Plans
Joe McGee (NX4T) is asking for the signs for Winter Field Day. Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) informed the Board that they are with Jerry Deitch (W4LST)
Carol Sjursen (KJ4AWB) sent the Letter of Intent last Wednesday or Thursday to Broward County Emergency Management. Once we hear back from them, we will know if the Winter Field Day is a go or not.
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) will put up a form on the website on or around November 10, 2021, for people to RSVP if they are participating. The Field Day will be held for two days again. We will not need a van for this time, because we will have the Pavilion this year.
e) Nominating Committee
Jerry Deitch (W4LST) declined. Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) asked Barry Porter (), and he agreed to be the chair of the Nominating Committee
f) Post office issue
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) will get information from a UPS Mail Box service in Margate.
3) Communication issues
We, as a board, have issues responding to emails in a timely fashion. To resolve the communication problem, the Board suggests adding “GCARA” at the beginning of the subject line of each email related to the club.
4) Board members field trip to repeater room
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) tried to call Kirsten (JKV) to see if they have a problem if we go up there as a group to see the repeater room. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) thinks this is a great idea to bring all board members on the same page regarding the repeater room.
5) Trustee Report – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)
a) Noise on .610
The noise is still an issue on the .610 repeater. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) reported that the PL Tone is back on and active. Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) did a quick test and confirmed that the PL Tone is not turned on. We think the noise is generated within the system.
b) A/C for repeater room
Jerry Deitch (W4LST) donated an A/C for the repeater room, but Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) has not heard back from JKN maintenance if we can install the A/C.
c) UPS
We do not know if the defect UPS has been replaced yet.
6) Tribute for Mike’s Electronics
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) would like to get a beer mug for Mike Spivak for his years of service to the HAM community. Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) suggested printing a more personal message on the mug, and Jeff Stahl (K4BH) will come up with some words.
7) BARC
According to Marty Falk (KI4IQZ), Al Soto is trying to revitalize the BARC. GCARA will close further discussions for now.
8) Speaker request for October meeting
We do not have a speaker for October. Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) asked all Board members to help find a speaker for October.
9) Adjournment
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) adjourned the meeting at 15:57 EDT (19:57 UTC).
Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association
General Membership Meeting
Meeting Minutes
1) Call to Order
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT)called to order the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association’s regular meeting at 19:30 EDT (23:30UTC) on September 28, 2021, over ZOOM. A quorum was present with 17 members.
2) Pledge of Allegiance
3) Secretary’s Report – Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)
Motion to approve Minutes from August 24, 2021. Jeff Stahl (K4BH) second the motion. Meeting minutes accepted without objection.
4) Treasurer’s Report – Erik Olmer (W4EJO)
We had two new members (Ramon Fernandez KO4BRS and Jared Sherman KC2MMI).
Two bank fees since our last meeting because of the way the bank cuts their month. Last month we had no bank fees—$ 20.00 for web hosting as every month. And we also spend $82.49 on business cards to hand out with the Club’s information on one side a list of our repeaters’ information on the other side.
We spent $475.00 for a backup antenna paid to Mike’s Electronics.
The checking account has $8,752.6. The PayPal account has $115.2. The total available to the Club is $8,867.86
Joe McGee (NX4T) was asking what precisely the definition of “Net Budget” is. Erik Olmer (W4EJO) explained that “Net Budget” is an estimated budget for the year.
5) Membership Chair’s Report – Joe McGee (NX4T)
For this month, we have 51 paid single members and three paid family members who carried four additional family members with them. In addition, we have 19 Lifetime members. The total number of members for this month is 77.
6) VE Status Report – Jeff Stahl (K4BH)
Jeff Stahl (K4BH) reported that he might have a location for testing in Coral Springs. He met with a lady from CS, and she has a community room available just off of the police station, and we could probably squeeze 20 people in there; if COVID numbers drop off, we could get up to 30 people in there. No details are worked out yet.
There is also a possibility of using some of the community rooms at the parks for our meetings. The lady suggested contacting the parks. Jeff Stahl (K4BH) did not have the chance to follow up on that yet. Each park has a big room we could book, but we don’t know if there will be any cost for the Club.
7) Repeater Report – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)
Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) reported that the .610 repeater has a few issues. One of them being interfering, static noise. We have not figured out yet, the origin of the noise. We know it is coming from the outside. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) asked if anybody could hear the noise to check on the input and report to him the QTH and whether or not the station could hear the noise.
We now have a spare UHF antenna. We have two complete spare repeater systems. One is sitting at the house of Kenny Hollenbeck (KE4NC), donated by Mike Wolf (K2HXC). Terry and John donated the other system; it is a dual-band system.
Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) has also contacted the BARA to see what will happen with the Club, and he found out that the Club will try to get members back into the Club. BARA also talked to the Palmetto Club and DCARA.
Joe McGee (NX4T) asked if it was possible to replace the current .610 machine with one of the spare repeaters to test if we could eliminate the noise. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) explained that it would not be that easy because of the cabels going to the CAT controller. The cables are made specifically for the repeater we are using right now. If we replaced that repeater without having the proper wires, we would have no courtesy tone or anything like that.
Jeff Stahl (K4BH) mentioned that the PL tone is not turned on, and turning on the PL tone could eliminate the noise if it is a random interference. If the noise still makes it through the repeater, we know the interference is intentional. Unfortunately, we cannot turn on the PL tone because of issues with the CAT controller. For reasons unknown at this time, the decoding does not work correctly, and once the PL tone is turned on, the repeater will not key up anymore, not even with the correct PL sent.
8) Web Admin Report – Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) reported no significant changes to the website. The only new feature added is a contact form to make it easier for visitors or members to contact the board members. The contact form can be reached by clicking on “Contact Us” at the main menu at the very top of the page.
9) Announcements
a) GCARA Quarterly Dinner
This Sunday evening, October 3, 2021, at 19:00 EDT (23:00 UTC), the Club hosts the quarterly dinner at Wings Plus on Sample Road.
b) Sunshine Committee
Hope Smith (WB3ANE) is our new member of the Sunshine Committee.
10) Speaker: Jeff Stahl (K4BH)
Jeff is going to host a game of Kahoot.
11) Adjournment
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) adjourned the meeting at 20:00 EDT (00:00 UTC).
Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association
Board Meeting
Minutes
1) Call to Order
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT)called to order the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association’s Board meeting at 14:35 EDT (18:35 UTC) on September 19, 2021, on ZOOM. A quorum was present with six board members.
2) Old Business
a) Repeater status and connections – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)
Everything is working OK. Mike’s Electronics has received the check for the antenna. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) will arrange to transport the antenna to his warehouse. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) will also schedule the pickup of a VHF Motorola repeater donated by Mike Wolf (K2HXC).
Nothing has happened with the remote site yet. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) was sick, and Eric was too busy to do anything.
The overheating of the .610 machine is fixed. The UPS was damaged from a lightning hit. Joe McGee (NX4T) went up there and plugged the fans into a wall outlet.
Jeff Stahl (K4BH) advised that Jerry Deitch (W4LST) offered a small A/C unit to provide additional cooling for the repeater room. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) is still waiting for JKV maintenance to get back with him and let him know if it is OK to have an additional A/C unit.
b) Next Club Dinner
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) wanted to know if we should have another dinner or picnic before the end of the year. The Board decided that the Dinners are more successful, so we will plan the next dinner for October 3, 2021, at 19:30 EDT (23:30 UTC).
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) will create a signup sheet on the website.
Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) will investigate if we can get the new antenna up on JKV before we need it to store it for future use, whatever that use may be.
Mike’s Electronics will also donate cables and an interface. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) will get the items and store them for the club.
c) Membership—begin and duration – Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)
We have sent out a poll to ask the members how they feel about this change, and out of the members who participated in the poll, 73% agree with this change.
d) Status of EchoLink – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)
Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) has nothing new on EchoLink. He was not able to do anything due to his health condition.
e) Status of WinLink Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) reported that the HD on the laptop for WinLink is not working, and he will have to replace the HD.
f) Winter Field Day Plans
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) will proceed with the paperwork for the Winter Field Day, and at the same time, we will ask the members via an ePoll who would participate in a Winter Field Day.
Poll results as of October 7, 2021. Last vote was casted on October 4, 2021.
g) Post Office Box issue
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) will get information on a mailbox service on Atlantic Blvd and provide info to the Board in the next meeting.
3) Vote on Writing Check for Insurance
The amount for the insurance is $180.42. It was approved without objections.
4) Nominating Committee for Officers
Al already said that he is not available for the nominating committee this year. Jeff Stahl (K4BH) nominated Jerry Deitch (W4LST) and was accepted without objection.
5) Broward County Amateur Radio Club
Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) will talk to the person who is left in charge of the club’s business to discuss possible options for a merger.
6) Get Sunshine Committee established again
Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) suggested Jesse Shannon for this position, and Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) will talk to him.
7) New Activities Needed
a) HF Station Drill – Erik Olmer (W4EJO)
Erik Olmer (W4EJO) and Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) will start a pilot program inviting people on ZOOM to watch and listen to what is going on at 07:00 EDT (11:0 UTC) at the FPTN.
b) Workshop
Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) and Jeff Stahl (K4BH) will go to Mike’s Electronics to see what inventory is left to be used for workshops. The Board gave them permission to spend up to $500.00.
8) Weekend Park Meetings
We will be looking into opportunities for an event at a park more central to the members.
9) Change meeting time for BM
The Board has unanimously decided to change the meeting time to 14:30 hrs.
10) Adjournment
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) adjourned the meeting at 16:32 EDT (20:32 UTC).
Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association
General Membership Meeting
Meeting Minutes
1) Call to Order
Joe McGee (NX4T)called to order the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association’s regular meeting at 19:30 EDT (23:30UTC) on August 24, 2021, over ZOOM. A quorum was present with 18 members.
2) Pledge of Allegiance
3) Secretary’s Report – Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)
Motion to approve Minutes from July 27, 2021. Erik Olmer (W4EJO) second. Meeting minutes accepted without objection.
4) Treasurer’s Report – Erik Olmer (W4EJO)
1 New member Justin Sligh. Otherwise, there have not been many transactions this month other than the usual monthly fees.
The total balance as of 8/20/2021 is 9,394.71. The fees of the new member will be on next month’s report.
5) Membership Chair’s Report – Joe McGee (NX4T)
Joe McGee (NX4T) reported 56 paid members, 19 Lifetime members, which brings us to a total of 75 members. One additional member signed about today, Ramon Lee Fernandez (KO4BRS) and is not on the roster yet, so that will bring our total membership to 76 members. Joe McGee (NX4T) will get in touch with this new member.
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) announced a new Lifetime member—Jesse Shannon (KJ4FKK). We thank Jesse for his relentless help and countless donations to the club to make all the club projects such as the remote HF station happening.
6) VE Status Report – Jeff Stahl (K4BH)
Jeff Stahl (K4BH) is going to hold a test session in Crystal River with the local VE team on August 25, 2021. He has been in contact with ARRL to find out how to send in-person test results electronically and he will report on the session in the next meeting.
7) Repeater Report – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)
Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) reported that everything is working as expected. We are still waiting for JKV to finish the work on the roof before we can go back up in the repeater room.
8) Web Admin Report – Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) reported that there have not been any substantial changes. He also reminded all members that we have a forum now and encourages members and non-members alike to start using it.
9) Announcements
a) Membership Due Date
The board is proposing to change the period of membership from the beginning of the fiscal year until the end of the fiscal year to the following.
Membership starts when payment is made with the following conditions. If a member pays on or before the 4th Tuesday of the month, the membership starts on the first of that same month.
Example:
The payment was made on March 17, 2021, which is before the 4th Tuesday of the month. In this case, the membership will start on March 1, 2021, and will end on February 28, 2022.
If a member pays after the 4th Tuesday of the month, the membership will start on the first of the following month.
Example:
The payment was made on March 25, 2021, which is after the 4th Tuesday of the month. In this case, the membership will start on April 1, 2021, and will end on March 31, 2022.
After a discussion among the members, the
The change is accepted by the membership without any objections.
b) GCARA is now a 501(C)(3)
Just a reminder that the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association is now a 501(C)(3) and able to accept tax-deductible donations.
c) Ongoing projects
We need volunteers for shelters. We need ideally 4 operators in each open shelter, but right now we are unable to put just 1 operator in each open shelter. You can bring family and you will be treated as staff and not as a refugee.
10) Speaker: Bob Greenberg (W2CYK)
The presentation started at 20:00 (00:00 UTC). Bob is the developer/inventor of the RFINDER, a device that functions as a cell phone and amateur radio, based on the Android operating system.
11) Adjournment
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) adjourned the meeting at 21:15 EDT (01:15 UTC).
Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association
Board Meeting
Minutes
1) Call to Order
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT)called to order the board meeting of the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association, Inc at 13:07 EDT (17:07 UTC) on July 18, 2021, on ZOOM. A quorum was present with 7 board members.
2) Old Business
a) Repeater status and connections – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)
The voter system is still on hold due to roof work on JKV. Joe McGee (NX4T) was asking if we could link the UHF and VHF repeater at the JKV. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) is not sure if it is possible but will investigate it. All repeaters are working as expected.
Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) will not be the trustee for the Palmetto Club since the FCC rejected him. FCC has a new regulation the prohibits being Trustee for more than one club.
b) Mike’s Electronics
Mike’s Electronics offered the club an antenna at his cost and the club could use it on JKV. Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) told Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) to find out what the price was and asked Erik Olmer (W4EJO) to cut a check. The price for the antenna is $450.00. Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) made a motion to approve the purchase of the antenna, Jeff Stahl (K4BH) second the motion. Motion passed without objection.
Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) will investigate if we can get the new antenna up on JKV before we need it to store it for future use, whatever that use may be.
Mike’s Electronics will also donate cables and an interface. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) will get the items and store them for the club.
c) Meetings in Person
Jeff Stahl (K4BH) is not sure how the school would react at this time to bring a new organization into the school due to the new COVID cases. He will talk to the school about this once the public health situation has improved.
d) Next Club Dinner
The next dinner is scheduled for September 18, 2021. The owner of Wings Plus would like us to move the meeting to Sunday since that is a better day for the restaurant. Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) will send out a poll asking the members whether they would like to do the dinner or not due to the current situation with COVID. Joe McGee (NX4T)
e) Joe McGee (NX4T) — HF Station
Joe McGee (NX4T) has nothing new to report on the HF station. Use has not picked up yet. Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) made the argument that what is enough usage regarding keep sending emails or maintaining the website. Emails have a very low open rate, and our website barely gets any traffic. Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) commented that this may be due to the advanced age of our club members, and we need younger members. Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) mentioned that the HF station could be advertised more and used to attract younger members. Jeff Stahl (K4BH) added that new HAMs often don’t upgrade their technician license because they say they can’t use HF. The remote station could encourage them to upgrade.
f) Membership Dues – Policy on Effective Date
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) will work on new wording for when membership will start. Joe McGee (NX4T) made the motion to change the start of membership to the month when it was first paid. Second by Jeff Stahl (K4BH). Motion passed without objections.
g) Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) — Echo Link
Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) will install Echo Link at JKV and hook it up to the .610 repeater. The project with David Warner did not come to realize due to disagreements on the terms.
h) Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) — WinLink
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) has started cleaning his laptop which he will donate to the club for use with WinLink. Nothing else has happened yet due to a lack of time.
3) Jesse Shannon — Recommended for Lifetime member
Erik Olmer (W4EJO) suggested Jesse Shannon as a Lifetime member due to the large number of donations he gave. Joe McGee (NX4T) will talk to Jesse Shannon before we move on with that decision to let him know that his donation towards the HF Project may not be used for a while and if he wishes the club will refund his donation. Contingent on this conversation we will announce in the next General Meeting his Lifetime Membership
4) Board Slate for October
All current board members are agreeing to stay on the slate.
5) Winter Field Day 2022 – Plans
Winter Field Day 2021 is going to happen on January 29 and 30, 2021. Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) will fill out the paperwork to reserve the Pavilion at Quiet Waters Park. The club will decide whether or not to meet in person later this year depending on the public health situation.
6) Adjournment
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) adjourned the meeting at 14:32 EDT (18:32 UTC).
Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association
General Membership Meeting
Meeting Minutes
1) Call to Order
Joe McGee (NX4T) called to order the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association’s regular meeting at 19:30 EDT (23:30UTC) on July 27, 2021, over ZOOM. A quorum was present with 18 members and.
2) Pledge of Allegiance
3) Secretary’s Report – Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)
Motion to approve Minutes of June 22, 2021, was made by Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) and second by Jeff Stahl (K4BH). Motion passed without objection.
4) Treasurer’s Report – Erik Olmer (W4EJO)
This month’s starting balance is different from last months ending balance due to a transaction that came in after the report was created for the last meeting.
We had dues coming in from 5 members. 4 new members:
John Hale
Terry Delmonaco
Ric Green
Ronald Row
Jesse Shannon donated $2,200.00 towards the HF project. Thank you, Jesse.
Recurring expenses: $24.00
PayPal Fees: $19.17
PayPal to Checking: $581.45
Picnic: $275.00 / ($326.78) Net: ($51.78)
The amended checking ending balance for June is $6,897.44.
This month’s checking ending balance is $9,328.11
This month’s PayPal ending balance is $57.96
This month’s total ending balance is $9,386.07
5) Membership Chair’s Report – Joe McGee (NX4T)
75 members / 49 single members / 8 family members.
6) VE Status Report – Jeff Stahl (K4BH)
Jeff Stahl (K4BH) was not able to get back to the VE activities. No changes since the last month.
7) Repeater Report – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)
Repeaters are operational. We have not been working on them lately. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) had some health issues to deal with. Everything is on standstill right now. We received equipment donations; a brand new dual-band repeater along with a UHF amplifier (commercial grade) and along with the duplexing cans. The equipment was donated by Terry Delmonaco and John Hale. THANK YOU!
8) HF Remote Station
Joe McGee (NX4T) reported that the use of the HF remote is not enough to justify its existence. We will give it another three months and decide then.
9) Web Admin Report – Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) installed a forum on our website which can be used to discuss anything HAM radio-related.
10) Membership dues – Policy on Effective Date
This item was tabled until next month due to a lack of time.
11) Adjournment
Joe McGee (NX4T)adjourned the meeting at 19:54 EDT (23:54 UTC).
Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association
Board Meeting
Minutes
1) Call to Order
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT)called to order the board meeting of the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association, Inc at 13:10 EDT (17:10 UTC) on July 18, 2021, on ZOOM. A quorum was present with 7 board members.
2) Old Business
a) Repeater status and connections – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)
Everything is back up and running. The voter system is still in progress. We need to thank Terry Delmonaco (KM4HJJ) and John Hale (KA4WKS) for donating a duplexer, amplifier, and dual-band repeater.
3) Membership dues — Policy on Effective Date
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) is suggesting reconsidering the Effective Date of membership and modify it to the date of payment rather than the fiscal year. Jeff Stahl (K4BH) would like to know if there is a problem because we want to change it. Erik Olmer (W4EJO) explained that it seems most of the new members assume that the membership is 12 months from the date they pay. Jeff Stahl (K4BH) motion to table until the input of general membership second by Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) 5/2
4) Quarterly Dinner – Change venue or day?
The owner of Wings Plus said that they could provide us better service if we had it on a different day than a Friday or a Saturday. Jeff Stahl (K4BH) – Most restaurants are slammed on Friday or Saturday. We could move to Sunday, but not every restaurant has a room like Wings Plus to give us privacy. Jeff Stahl (K4BH) will check with Wings Plus management if Sunday would work for them.
5) General Meetings — If not hospital, WHERE?
The hospital still has not opened. Joe McGee (NX4T) is suggesting looking for a new location. Jeff Stahl (K4BH) agrees. Jeff Stahl (K4BH) suggested pursuing the issue of VEC and Club meetings separately. Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) will talk to his church to see if we could conduct testing on Saturdays. Coral Springs Charter on University and Sample is interested in adding HAM radio into their programs and Jeff Stahl (K4BH) will talk to them if they would be willing to host our club meetings.
6) Upgrade the remote HF Station? Joe McGee (NX4T)
The HF station is operating properly now. There was an issue due to the station staying in transmit on AM and caused the station to get hot. The AM option is now removed. We should have a timeout on the rig, and we do not know why the timeout failed.
Joe McGee (NX4T) is suggesting trying to promote the station and give it another 3 to 6 months and if the use of the remote station doesn’t pick up to discontinue the station.
Motion by Joe McGee (NX4T) to reevaluate the usage of the station in 3 months During this time any improvements are on hold and more advertisement to generate traffic. Motion carried with no objections. Erik Olmer (W4EJO) suggested having the HF station tuned to the FPTN every morning at 7:00 AM
7) Echo Link and David Warner’s use of the same
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) listened to the HAM Helpers Net on Friday. Joe McGee (NX4T) thinks that if Echo Link is only on for his net, has no benefits for the club. His second concern is that he allegedly opened the HAM Helpers Net for non-radio equipment but that was a misunderstanding.
Jeff Stahl (K4BH) will draft a memorandum and present it to the board for approval.
8) WinLink
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) made contact with Bobby Graves (KB5HAV) and he suggested starting with registering W4BUG on WL2K. Once the call sign has been in the system, we can request authorization for W4BUG to become a node. We have the option to use a Raspberry Pi or a Windows computer. Raspberry Pi is inexpensive, but if we ever want to go HF with WinLink we will need a Windows Computer.
Two protocols are commonly used. AX.25 packet radio or VARA_FM. VARA is faster and has greater throughput
For HAM radio use that is all we need. Without the HF station, we will need internet. With an HF station, we are completely independent of the Internet.
The second application of WinLink is to work with DHS & the US government. We will have to apply for a license through the (EOC). This will not be a HAM license and doesn’t require a HAM license. That program is called “SHARES.” I believe this is the link to the program: https://www.cisa.gov/shared-resources-shares-high-frequency-hf-radio-program
9) Website
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) gave a presentation of the new features implemented on the website. These features are (1) Repeater maps (2) Online Membership Application (3) Forum
The board also discussed creating business cards to promote the club. Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) will design the cards and present them to the board when ready.
10) Adjournment
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) adjourned the meeting at 15:08 EDT (19:08 UTC).
GCARA celebrated summer yesterday, July 10, 2021, with a picnic and mini-Field Day with about 30 of its members. Although rain was forecast as usual in July at this time of year, our intrepid group braved the infrequent drops and enjoyed a feast for both the stomach and the eyes.
I want to extend a special vote of thanks to Gerald Deitch W4LST who planned the menu and did all of the shopping, transported the food, and then was “Chef de jour” for our hungry hams! He did a lot of hard work and heavy lifting to get the food to the park implementing strict food preservation protocol and was assisted by his wife when it came time to lift the heavy large coolers into his Explorer. Those coolers weigh more than 100 pounds when you consider about 80 pounds of ice each and 25-40 pounds of food and beverages. That is a monumental task for one person and I want to thank Gerry from the bottom of my heart for volunteering to do this picnic. In the future, I envision more than one person coordinating the food and beverages or getting ready-made food to serve. I know from personal experience throughout my tenure as food chairman that the job is just too much for one person. Thank you Gerry for your unselfish and patient contribution to the preparation of our food today.
Okay! There were goodies for the eyes, too. We were blessed to have five show and tell exhibits brought to the picnic for us hammies to look at and enjoy. Charlie Artner KN4VDW took photos and will post them on the website for all to enjoy. Our VP Joe McGee brought some vintage ham equipment from military use for us to see the stuff he started with. It brought fond memories to some of the older hams who recognized all of it and had used it as well. Many stories were exchanged about experiences with the equipment. He also brought an antenna tuner, and other equipment to offer for sale from his collection. We may see this equipment listed on a MailChimp ad or the website in the future. Joe offered a 50/50 split with the club. Thank you, Joe.
Kenny Hollenbeck KE4NC was kind enough to bring his homebrew radio equipment and the hams were thrilled to hear how Kenny put together his operational center. Kenny is an expert in communication using things he finds around the house or utilizing unusual and varied designs to build his equipment. He makes it all work and shows a lot of creativity in doing so. I am always excited to see what he will come up with for antennas or communication gear. It is truly unique and outside-of-the-box thinking. Good work Kenny! And. Kenny, thank you also for lugging your grill to the park, as you tend to do faithfully for every club function. We appreciate your contributions to the club!
A member new to the club, Ben Echavarria N7BBE, brought his radio go kit with his design of solar power and battery set up using an $8.00 Plastic box from Walmart that contained his lightweight 20 V battery and connections for his flexible solar panel. He showed me how he had drilled the holes for the connections along the upper rim of the case and how the case supplies his continuous emergency power. There was lots of ingenuity here as well and it was a treat to see how different minds utilize their creativity to make contacts.
We were happy to see the return of Mickey Galper, AA4AC, with a demonstration called “All Digital Modes with just a PC”. With the use of his computer alone, Mickey was able to use DMR, D-Star, GMC, Fusion sites without repeaters for those entities. The software has enhanced Mickey’s radio experiences on the digital outlets without the use of a radio or antenna. Mickey stressed it does not replace radio, it merely enhances the amateur’s radio experience. This works for all digital modes and Mickey will be giving a demo of its use during our November Meeting after our elections. Originally seen on the W4BUG website, Mickey successfully backtracked the info and found the source code. Thank you Mickey for your enlightening display.
Last, but not least, Mike Samokieszyn KF4ZW, known to us as “Mike Sams” brought his “shack in a rolling Gator box”. It was a beauty to see all of the intricate connections and his antenna array and how he neatly engineered his station. I marvel at people’s ingenuity. (Mike Sams, by the way, has been instrumental in helping Ricky Eaton KD4HGR and Joe McGee NX4T with the router problems and programming end of our remote station. Between those three gentlemen and our HF Guru AL Flapan, AF4FA, we have been enjoying the use of our HF station for several months. No problems have been too big for these 4 brains!!!)
The “Show and Tell” portion of the picnic was so good, it has been difficult to choose a winner from our contest. Each of the four entrants showed great ingenuity and a winner will be announced shortly.
Unfortunately for some, being full of food and too excited talking to one another, we opted not to do the Foxhunt this picnic. It will be back at our next event with hopefully better weather and a larger group at an opportune time.
I was pleased to meet our three newest members, Terry Delmonaco KM4HJJ, Ric Green KG4ARU, and John Hale KA4WKS (who brought his son Nick along). Besides being our newest members, John and Terry have donated their Fusion equipment to the club as a backup for our repeater. They are currently working closely with our Repeater trustee, Ricky Eaton KD4HGR, at John Knox Village. Thank you gentlemen for attending the picnic and meeting some of our other members.
Our third annual Picnic at Vista View Park was a success on many levels. We came, we socialized, we learned and we broke bread together for a few hours and we became closer as a result. We were able to enjoy the company of an older member, Hope Smith WB3ANE, and some of the newer members like Barry Gardner KO4FBU and others mentioned before. What a treat to see humanity at its best.
For those of you who could not make it, we missed you and hope that we will see you the next time!
Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association
General Membership Meeting
Meeting Minutes
1) Call to Order
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) called to order the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association’s regular meeting at 19:30 EDT (23:30UTC) on June 22, 2021, over ZOOM. A quorum was present with 21 members and.
2) Pledge of Allegiance
3) Secretary’s Report – Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)
Motion to accept minutes Erik Olmer (W4EJO) second motion passed without objection.
4) Treasurer’s Report – Erik Olmer (W4EJO)
We collected dues from new members Steve Surowinski, Ben Echavarria, Doug Mitchell, Kenny, and Sally Hollenbeck renewed Marty Falk renewed. We also received several donations for $145.00. Recurring fees totaled $20.00 this month. The bank fees for this month have not been posted yet, so we may have 2 bank fees in the next month’s report. PayPal fees were $13.59 this month.
In Summary,
we received $200 in dues this month,
$145.00 in Donations,
total expenses on PayPal $13.59,
Transfer from PayPal to Checking $312.12,
For the Picnic, we collected $80.00,
Checking account has currently $6,723.61,
PayPal account has $144.75
Total Club Asses are $6,868.36
5) Membership Chair’s Report – Joe McGee (NX4T)
53 Active members and 18 Lifetime members (3 new members). It has been talked about trying to get the VEC going again, possibly at Joe McGee’s (NX4T) place.
6) VE Status Report – Jeff Stahl (K4BH)
Jeff Stahl (K4BH) was not present at today’s meeting.
7) Repeater Report – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)
Repeaters are working as expected. The clock on the Boca repeater will be disabled because it is constantly wrong and the only way to correct the clock is to be physically in front of the repeater. As soon as the hospital will let Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) back into the repeater room he will install the amplifier at the .820 machine and deactivate the clock.
8) Web Admin Report – Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)
Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) gave an update on all the changes that have happened to the website recently. Added features include:
- Signup for the email newsletter on the website
- All presentations are now on the homepage under the tap Presentations.
- GCARA has now a YouTube Channel
- Meeting Minutes have been separated in BoD and General Meetings.
- Repeaters have been more defined. There are now W4BUG repeaters, Broward and Palm Beach County Repeaters. Many repeaters now have a link to their location, which will open a map and allow the visitor to get an idea of where the repeaters are approximate.
- A new tap with all the local nets.
- Still under development is the Membership Application form.
9) Announcements
a) Mini Field Day/Picnic on July 10, 2021, @ Vista View Park, Pavilion #1
Open from 09:00 – 16:00
4001 SW 142 Ave
Davie, FL 33330
b) GCARA is now a 501(C)(3)
Our club is now a not-for-profit organization, and any donation can be deducted from the taxes.
c) Ongoing projects
Currently, there are 2 big projects ongoing. (1) Amplification for the HF remote state at Joe McGee (NX4T) house, which needs appr. $1,200.00, maybe even close to $2,000.00 (2) restoring the infrastructure to get better coverage throughout Broward County. Donations are welcomed.
10) Speaker: Joe McGee (NX4T)
20:07 EDT (00:07 UTC) Joe McGee (NX4T) is speaking to the club tonight on “Basic Electronics.”
The presentation lasted from 20:07 EDT (00:07 UTC) until
11) Adjournment
Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT)adjourned the meeting at 21:15 EDT (01:15 UTC).
