Western Pennsylvania Section News, May 10, 2018
2018 Western Pennsylvania Section Convention
(At Breezeshooters Hamfest – June 2 & 3)
Saturday, June 2
7:30 – 9:00 VE Exams – Hosted by Breezeshooters ARC.
Please bring Photo ID, COPY of license or current CSCE. Time is limited. Retesting will NOT be offered at the Saturday session, but will be available at the Sunday exam Session.
9:00 – 10:15 Go-Kit Demos and Discussions – Hosted by WACOM, presenter Tom Wright KC3TOM. Bring your go-kits for show-and-tell, see what others are doing, and exchange some ideas…
10:30 – 11:45 ARRL Update, Q&A – Tom Abernethy W3TOM, Atlantic Division Director. Get the latest information on recent ARRL Board of Directors activities and initiatives, regulatory changes and insights into the issues affecting Amateur Radio. Lots of accurate information, so don’t miss out!
12:00 – 12:30 Lunch
12:30 – 1:45 Amateur Radio Near Space Launches – Hosted by WPA Section Youth Coordinator Bruce Gibson K3BEG and participants from several of the recent High Altitude Ballooning and Amateur Radio (a Radio-related STEM activity for young people—and the young at heart) launch events that are taking place in our WPA Section!
Young scientists and their advisers will discuss their radio ballooning activities, a chase and retrieve launch and a long-distance launch tracked on the Internet. Come see recovered space vehicles and equipment that rose to more than 20 miles above Earth in our WPA Section!
2:00 – 3:15 YL Forum – Hosted by Lois Gutshall WB3EFQ and the Young Ladies Radio League. Calling all YLs! This is a great opportunity to get together and meet with other YLs from around our WPA Section. So many WPA YLs are very busy and active both on the air and behind the scenes. To show our appreciation for everything you do, we’ve reserved this forum of, by and for the Young Ladies of our WPA Section.
3:30 – 5:00 Digital Voice Radio Demos and Discussion – Hosted by Cory Sickles WA3UVV. Learn about DV methodologies available and experience samples of DV audio. See DV radios and repeaters, plus-up-to-the-minute technologies. While the subject matter can be rather technical, it will be presented in a fashion that is informative and easy to understand.
Sunday, June 3
8:00 – 8:45 WPA Section Cabinet Meeting / Open Forum – Hosted by WPA Section Manager Joe Shupienis W3BC. Senior WPA Staff will discuss activities and initiatives, along with plans and programs. Open to all with a short Q&A period following the reports and discussion.
9:00 – 10:15 Net Control Stations and Net Managers Workshop – Presented by Brad McCarrell KC3EDQ. Preferred procedures and best practices for Net Control Stations, and members checking in to traffic and emergency nets.
10:30 – 11:45 ARES Update and Planning – Hosted by Bud Plants N3TIR WPA Section Emergency Coordinator. All DECs and ECs are encouraged to attend. Review of Spring SET/Red Cross exercise. Information for developing Emergency Communications Plans and agreements with partner agencies. ICS courses, EC-001 suspension, and upcoming ARRL HQ changes to the ARES Program.
12:00 – 2:00 VE Exams – Hosted by Breezeshooters ARC.
Please bring Photo ID, COPY of license or current CSCE. Retesting will be available at the Sunday Exam Session.
ALL FORUMS, VE TESTING AND OTHER SESSIONS ARE HELD IN “BUILDING 7”
STOP BY OUR ARRL EXHIBIT IN THE MAIN HALL!
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MEET OUR SECTION STAFF, GET ANSWERS TO YOUR QUESTIONS
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ARRL MEMBERSHIP – SPECIAL GIFTS FOR NEW AND RENEWING MEMBERS!
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DXCC QSL CARD CHECKING – BOTH DAYS
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FREE ARRL HANDOUTS AND BROCHURES
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BROWSE THROUGH OUR BOOK SAMPLES
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FREE STATION SUPPLIES, STICKERS, PENS, ETC.
Volunteers Needed – May 11 in Pittsburgh
Volunteers are needed for the Pittsburgh Komen Race for the Cure on Mother’s Day May 11th. Contact Bob Mente NU3Q for more information and to sign up to help with communications. His email is nu3q@verizon.net
Field Day Is Almost Here!
If your group is planning a Field Day station and would like visitors to find you, please add your information to the ARRL Field Day Locator page, which can be found at http://www.arrl.org/field-day-locator. Our WPA Staff members are making our plans to visit every site, but we can’t visit you if we don’t know where you are. Please visit the Field Day Locator page and provide us with your information. Go ahead and put yourself on the map!
District Meeting Schedule
North-1 July 14th following the Northwestern PA Hamfest in Wattsburg, Erie County
South-1 November 4th following the WACOM Hamfest in Cannonsburg
South-2 July 1 following the Somerset Hamfest in Somerset
North-2 To Be Determined…
As we did last year, we will combine topics from the ARES conference and the Club Leadership Workshop, and deliver them to a location near you. With the price of gasoline shooting ever higher, our “road show” will save everybody some money! Plan to attend!!!
Help Wanted
Providing excellent service to a section as big as WPA simply cannot be done by a handful of people. Our WPA friends deserve the best we can give them, and to do that, we need your help! If you have been thinking about volunteering to help, have a look at the list of Station Level Appointments by visiting the ARRL Website at http://www.arrl.org/field-organization and scrolling down the page to “Station Level Appointments”.
If you’re having trouble choosing, take a good look at Technical Specialist. I’ve often said that everybody is an expert at something, and this appointment gives you the opportunity to share your special knowledge with others. As we all know, a good Elmer can make all the difference to a new ham’s enjoyment of amateur radio. The Elmer works with the newcomers to help them get started in the greatest hobby on Earth, which can lead to their lifelong involvement. The Technical Specialist is sort of like an “Official Elmer” and is the go-to person in your club, town or county for all your questions about antennas, radios, grounding, digital modes, and many more topics. If you are that person, why not make it official? Contact me for more information!
Upcoming Events
Our WPA Section always has something going on, and we’re already off to a running start!
The major events this month are the Dayton Hamvention at the new location in Xenia Ohio for the second year. Next is our WPA Section Convention at the Breezeshooters Hamfest. This year we have scheduled 8 — count ’em — EIGHT forums covering a variety of interesting topics. There is something for everyone, so don’t miss out!
Field Day is just around the corner on June 23 and 24th. Is your group registered with the ARRL Field Day Locator?
| Date | Location | Event |
| May 17-20 | Xenia, OH | Dayton Hamvention |
| June 2-3 | Butler | Breezeshooters Hamfest and WPA Section Convention |
| June 23-24 | Various | Field Day |
In Conclusion 
If you’re looking for a program for your club meetings, why not put together some activities for new hams and those who are interested in Amateur Radio? Demo the latest entry level radios like the Icom 7300 and the Yaesu 991A (for example), have some Elmers available to answer questions, have a show and tell about DXing, digital modes, SDR, signal location… the list is endless.
Advertise it as much as you can, especially in schools, colleges, on bulletin boards at work, on your nets, and in person to the hams in your communities who recently got licensed. It doesn’t have to be perfect — it just has to be done. Who knows, you might make the difference needed to gain some active new members!
Above all else, go out of your way to make new hams feel welcome and respected! We want to make good amateur radio friendships in the best 100+ year tradition of Amateur Radio!
Still looking for more ideas for meeting programs? Drop me an invite or a request for a visit by any of our section staff. We are available to travel to your group, and can discuss a variety of very interesting Amateur Radio topics.
73 and Press On!
Joe Shupienis W3BC
