1)  Call to Order

Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) called on ZOOM to order the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association’s Board meeting at 14:30 EDT (18:30 UTC) on May 22, 2022. A quorum was present with five board members. Members present: Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT), Charlie Artner (KN4VDW), Jeff Stahl (K4BH), Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR); Members Absent: Tom Savoca (excused), Erik Olmer (W4EJO)

2)  Old Business

a)    Echo Link – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)

On hold due to other projects.

b)   WinLInk – Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)

On hold due to other projects.

c)    2023 Winter Field Day

January 28-29, 2023, is penciled in for Quiet Waters Park. Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) needs to work with Carol Sjursen (KJ4AWB) on the letter of intent (see sample).

d)   Replace PayPal

Due to ongoing problems with PayPal, Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) suggests switching to a different Plugin called Forms by GravityForms. He donated the cost of $159.00 for the first year. Forms are working with Stripe, a merchant account provider. Currently, the “Member Application” form and the “2022 Summer Field Day” form have been moved to Forms and are using Stripe to handle credit card transactions. The monthly dinner form has also been rolled out with Forms.

The contact form is still using the old form plugin, but since it does not use credit card charges, it is not as critical as the forms where charges apply.

e)    2022 ARRL Summer Field Day

i)     Technical Report – Jeff Stahl (K4BH)

Jeff Stahl (K4BH) has required parts for the SFD. He has the antennas that Joe made and will test them to ensure they are working correctly.

ii)    Web Report for SFD – Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)

Everything is in place so people can register.

iii)  Antennas for SFD – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)

Jeff Stahl (K4BH) has the antennas from Joe McGee (NX4T).

iv)  Food Shopping – Jerry Deitch (W$LST) / Ricki Witte (KJ4FSJ)

Jerry will handle the food shopping

v)    Safety Monitor – Ben (N7BBE)

Ben is the Safety Officer for the SFD.

vi)  Signs – Ben (N7BBE)

Ben will also do the signs, and Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) hopes that Mike Wolf (K2HXC) will be able to help.

vii)  Banners

Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) asked where the red Gold Coast banner with the yellow writing was. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) will try to find it. He believes they could be in several places, including Charlie Artner’s (KN4VDW) garage. Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) said he only had framed pictures and equipment from the club in his garage.

viii)       Log in Sheet – Erik Olmer (W4EJO)

Erik Olmer (W4EJO) will create the log-in sheet.

ix)  Information Table – Mike Wolf (K2HXC) & Rhonda (or Hope)

Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) hopes that Rhonda Pitone (KJ4FSJ) and Mike Wolf (K2HXC) will operate the information table. Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) has some material for the information table, but it is already three years old and might be outdated. Hope (WB3ANE) may also be on the information table.

x)    Generator

Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) asked who would bring the generator stored at Jesse Shannon’s (KJ4FKK) house. Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) will check with Jesse Shannon (KJ4FKK).

f)     Moving Boca Repeater – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)

We are still looking for a repeater to replace the temporary repeater. We need to free this repeater because it is a dual-band repeater, and we keep it as a backup because we can use it for VHF or UHF. We also have a UHF repeater on Charlie Artner’s (KN4VDW) garage floor. That repeater was donated by Mike Spivak (WB4RFC) when he closed the store.

Regarding moving the repeater, Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) will contact Eric Rodriguez and find out if there are any other tall buildings we could put our repeater. Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) moved to start researching a new location for the Boca repeater and not wait until we must move.

g)   Move WX station from Boca to JKV – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)

The WX station is still at the Boca site. It is straightforward to move the station. Access to the repeater in Boca is now also easy. Jeff Stahl (K4BH) motioned to move the WX station to the .610 repeater. The motion was seconded by Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) and carried 6-0.

h)   Remote HF Station – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)

Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) said that the remote station would be up by Friday, pending the delivery of the new antenna. The antenna is scheduled to arrive tomorrow. It seems the station is not doing too bad. The main problem is mostly on 6m. If that persists with the new antenna, we will block 6m on the HF station. The computer is working correctly. There is an issue with the tuner, which is locking up. Now the tuner is not talking to the radio anymore. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) will have to get on location to restart all systems manually.

3)  Testing – Jeff Stahl (K4BH)

No Test Session Report for this meeting.

4)  Was Boca Repeater replaced? – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)

We still don’t have a new repeater, so the spare repeater is still in place. However, Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) does not want to make this repeater the permanent solution. The reason for that is that this repeater is a dual-band repeater and can be used as a temporary replacement for both our VHF and UHF repeaters.

5)  Picnic

Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) asked if we should try to schedule another picnic?

After a brief discussion, the board agreed to schedule a picnic for September 17, 2022.

6)  June Dinner

June dinner will be on June 12, 2022, due to SFD being on the usual Sunday, and the Sunday before is Father’s Day. The board meeting in June will also be held on June 12.

7)  Service Award $65.00 for Joe McGee (NX4T)

Motion by Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) to award Joe McGee (NX4T) a $65.00 award for his services to the club and the HAM community. Seconded by Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR), motion carried 6-0.

8)  ARRL Grant Money – Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT)

Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) is looking for comments from Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) and Charlie Artner (KN4VDW).

Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) will send a list of equipment to Erik Olmer (W4EJO), so he can put a grant application together.

9)  Adjournment

Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) adjourned the meeting at 15:31 EDT (19:31 UTC).