1)  Call to Order

Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) called to order the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association’s regular meeting at 19:03 ET (00:03 UTC) over ZOOM on January 25, 2022.

2)  Pledge of Allegiance

3)  Secretary’s Report – Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)

Meeting minutes from November’s General Meeting have been accepted as displayed on the website.

4)  Treasurer’s Report – Erik Olmer (W4EJO)

LAST FISCAL YEAR

Membership Dues

Last fiscal year, we budgeted $2,000.00 for dues income, and we passed our goal. We brought $2,153.67 in dues in the previous fiscal year.

Other Revenues

In terms of other revenues, we brought in 3,300.00 dollars. In detail, we brought in $100.00 through auctions, $465.00 through general donations; $2,510.00 through the HF Project; and $225.00 through the name tags. The total spending in this category was $2,193.29

Total Income / Expenses

The total income for the last fiscal year was $7,572.63. About half of that income was straight donations. The expenses were $4,344.78. The full balance at the end of the fiscal year was $8.999.40.

Current Monthly Report

Dues collected for the current reporting period were $360.00, and along with the dues, we also collected $30.00 on additional donations. The recurring monthly service charges were $48.00. PayPal fees were $32.78.

The income for Winter Field Day was $390.00

The check for the memorial bricks for $898.70 has cleared

All the membership records have been updated following the updated bylaws and reflect the new due date of membership donations. For more information on how the due dates are now determined, please get in touch with a board member.

5)  Membership Chair Report – Joe McGee (NX4T)

Joe McGee (NX4T) reported that we had about 84 members in November, and currently, we are down to 77 due to the membership being expired.

6)  VE Status Report – Jeff Stahl (K4BH)

Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) is checking with his Church if we can do testing there. Jeff Stahl (K4BH) has received updates on the questions from ARRL, and as soon as we have a location, we will start testing again.

7)  Repeater Report – Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR)

The question came up whether we have a 220 MHz repeater and the answer to that question is no, and we do not intend to get one. The updates to the repeaters with AllStar will be done on the 442.500MHz repeater. We are going to connect this repeater to the East Coast Reflector. The model we are using is the ICOM FR5000.

Joe McGee (NX4T) wanted to know if we have been given a 6m repeater as a donation. Ricky Eaton (KD4HGR) explained that the repeater is not here yet. It was donated by Eric Rodrigues (KA4FLZ). The repeater is in repair because the tuning cans show signs of corrosion. They are supposed to be airtight, but moisture has still made it inside and built-up corrosion.

8)  Web Admin Report – Charlie Artner (KN4VDW)

The website has been attacked the last few weeks. We have purchased a WP plugin to tighten up the security and prevent malicious access and accounts created by bots. New accounts on the website have to be approved by an admin. Without approval, the new account holder will not receive a confirmation email, and without that, the user will not be able to set a password.

If a member has an issue logging in, please get in touch with Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) at kn4vdw@arrl.net.

A new feature was added to the Home page, the ARRL Audio News. The ARRL Audio News comes out every Friday and will be updated by Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) at his earliest convenience.

Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) reminded all members that we are on the Amazon Smile program, and it would help the club if members would designate our club as their non-profit when shopping on Amazon Smile.

9)  Announcements

a)    Marty Falk (KI4IQZ)

Marty Falk (KI4IQZ) has been selected for the SPECIAL SERVICE AWARD given by the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association.

b)   Sunshine Committee

Hope Smith (WB3ANE)—Sunshine Committee Chairman, and Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) are sending cards to people who are ill or need otherwise encouraging words. If you know of somebody who needs encouragement, please inform the Sunshine Committee.

c)    Winter Field Day – Joe McGee (NX4T)

Jesse Shannon has donated a generator for the off-grid power supply for WFD. Dan is operating separately and independently from the shelter/pavilion. Jerry Deitch (W4LST) is still in possession of the signs and will bring them to WFD. Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) will be looking for the banner.

We will have two people at the grill/food station.

Ben Echavarria (N7BBE) will meet with Mike Wolf (K2HXC) and Jerry Deitch (W$LST) at 09:00 hrs to set up the signs.

Due to the cold weather forecast, we plan to move the rigs into Charlie Artner’s (KN4VDW) tent at night to protect the operators from the frigid temperatures.

d)   Club Dinners

The board has decided to have Club Dinners more frequently in place of the General Club Meeting in person. The Club Dinners will be monthly now, Sunday before the General Club Meeting. Charlie Artner (KN4VDW) will provide a way to RSVP on the website for those who would like to come.

e)    Next Month’s Speaker

Next month’s speaker will be Bryan Fields (W9CR), and he will be talking about FASMA.

f)     Club Focus for 2022

Our club focus for the year will be to get people up to speed with their equipment and get volunteers for the community’s various needs. We would like to see a strong volunteer group in our club, so we are using our licenses and privileges thereof for the purpose they are meant to be used for in the community. We will help those wanting to upgrade their license and provide several practice opportunities.

10)      Adjournment

Melanie Fernandez (KJ4VCT) adjourned the meeting at 20:02 EST (01:02 UTC).