January, 2015 

Greetings to the Hams of Michigan:  

PRB-1 Update  

I have some very exciting news to share with you: Michigan now has a PRB-1 law! On the afternoon of January 15, 2015, Governor Snyder signed Senate Bill 0493 into law. It has been designated as Public Act 556. 

Today’s actions come as the culmination of 3 years work on behalf of the current PRB-1 team, which consists of Ed Hude, WA8QJE, State Government Liaison; Butch Hedges, KD8NKJ, Local Government Liaison; Hal Thomas, N8HAL, Local Government Liaison; Raoul Revord, W8RDR, Legal Advisor; Jay Nugent, WB8TKL, Webmaster; Pat Mullet, KC8RTW, Public Information Officer; Dale Williams, WA8EFK, Advisor, and Larry Camp, WB8R, Michigan Section Manager.  

At this point, I would like to recognize and thank the group of individuals who have worked on this project in the past, going back approximately 10 years, who laid the groundwork for the successful completion of this effort.  

I want to thank the hundreds of hams in Michigan who responded to the many calls to action over the past months as our effort gained momentum. The response was nothing short of tremendous. Each time we asked for emails to be sent or phone calls to be made, the response was outstanding. The feedback that we received about the Michigan hams communicating with various state offices was excellent! We received many positive comments about the polite, succinct response of the hams of Michigan. 

Hams of Michigan, you have faithfully represented the very best of amateur radio in rising to the occasion for the benefit of your fellow amateurs. You have my sincere appreciation.  

News From Around the Section  

The 2014 ARRL Centennial event is now in the record books. The last day for LoTW log uploads has been extended to January 22. The logs of all the W1AW portable stations will be run through the system again and the numbers will be crunched again and scores adjusted as necessary before the final tallies are made. Keep your eyes on the Centennial QSO Party website to check for your final scores and watch the main ARRL website as well for updates.  

The Worked All States (WAS) certificates have been designed and are pretty spiffy looking. The QSL cards from your contacts with the W1AW/portable stations are in the works as well. More information is available on the ARRL website.  

2015 Club Election Results  

Garden City ARC  

President:             Scott Deykes, WT8S

Vice President:     Shanon Herron, KA8SPW

Treasurer:             Fred Rowell, AC8LV

Secretary:             Julie Seymour, KD8TXP  

Thank you for accepting the call to serve. Amateur radio clubs are truly the lifeblood of amateur radio.  

Hospitality Acknowledgements  

Jan 11            Hazel Park Hamfest  

It was a pleasure to attend your event and I thank you for the hospitality you have shown me.  

Section Staff Travel Plans  

Feb 2-5, 2015           MSP Interop Conference Traverse City – WB8R, et al

Feb 7, 2015              HARA Swap, Negaunee – WB8R 

Feb 14, 2015            Traverse City Hamfest – WB8R  

Feb 15, 2015            Livonia ARC Hamfest - WB8TKL  

Mar 14, 2015            Crossroads Hamfest (new location Kazoo) – WB8R

Michigan Section Traffic/ARPSC Nets (All times Local)  

MACS - MI Amateur Communications System 3.952 1000 Daily  

UPN – Upper Peninsula Net 3.921 1700 Daily; Noon Sunday  

MIARPSC – MI Amateur Radio Public Service Corps 3.932 1700 Sunday

QMN – The Michigan Net 3.563 1830 and 2200 Daily  

MITN – MI Traffic Net 3.952 1900 Daily  

MIDTN – MI Digital Traffic Net 3.583 (Olivia 8/500) in waterfall 2000 Tues, Thurs, Sat  

MIADS – MI ARES D-Star Net. Reflector 24A Mon 2000  

D8EN - District 8 Emergency 3.909 Wed 2100  

GLETN – Great Lakes Emergency and Traffic Net 3.932 2000 Daily  

MVTN – MI VHF Traffic Net IRA Link System 2100 Mon, Wed, Fri, Sun

 NLEUP - Northern Lower Eastern UP Net 146.64- 18:30 Daily  

SEMTN – SE MI Traffic Net 146.76- 2215 Daily  

TMMTN – Thumb Mid-Michigan Traffic Net 147.30+ 2130 Mon - Sat  

More information is available at http://nts-mi.org/. Come join us on our traffic and public service nets.  

Amateur Radio Public Service Corps (ARPSC) Activities  

Station Activity Reports (SAR) for December, 2014: WB9JSR 528, K8ED 524, WB8WKQ 374, KB8RCR 327, K8LJG 214, K8RDN 176, N8FVM 152, WB8TQZ 72, WD8USA 67, WB8RCR 35, W8MSK 31, WN8QGV 19, N8OSL 17, WB8R 16, N8UN 9, KD8LSM 7, WB8WJV 5, WB8H 3, KD8WEG 2.   Total SAR reported: 2578  

Brass Pounder’s League (BPL) for December, 2014: WB9JSR 528, K8ED 524.  

Public Service Honor Roll (PSHR) for December, 2014: WB8R 217, WB8RCR 180, WD8USA 175, N8FVM 170, N8OSL 137, K8RDN 135, KB8RCR 120, WB9JSR 110, WB8TQZ 100, WB8WKQ 100, K8ED 90, KC8YVF 75, WN8QGV 30, KD8WEG 15, WB8H 14.  

Net traffic for December, 2014: The Michigan Net 231, Michigan Amateur Communications System 228, Michigan Traffic Net 211, Michigan VHF Traffic Net 57, Southeastern Michigan Traffic Net 55, Upper Peninsula Net 54, Michigan Digital Traffic Net 49, Great Lakes Emergency and Traffic Net 35, Michigan Amateur Radio Public Service Corps 10, District 3 ARPSC Net 10, Motor City Radio Club 2 Meter Net 10, Saginaw County ARES Net 7, District 3 Digital Training net 5, Bay Area Regional Traffic System 3, Genesee County ARPSC Traffic and Training Net 0, Red Cross Net of Greater Grand Rapids 0, Branch County Emergency Net 0, District 5 Hospital Net 0, Genesee County Radio Club 0, District 8 Emergency Net 0.  

Total net traffic reported: 965  

Volunteer Service Dollar Values:   ARES: $140,138; NTS: $52,850     

Total contribution for December, 2014: $192,988  

If you are reporting monthly, you can see your PSHR eligibility status at http://www.nts-mi.org/. The full details are at: http://www.arrl.org/public-service-honor-roll. This award recognizes the efforts of hams that are active in public service. Those reporting accumulate points for checking into nets, volunteering, holding Section appointment(s) and handling message traffic.  

EC’s can see their reports of Form FSD-212 here: http://ares-mi.org/ec_his.php If you send your report to WB8RCR and don’t see it noted there, send a note to John to tell him your report has gone missing.  

EC’s: Be sure to share your FSD 212 with your District EC, your ARES/RACES members and with your county’s Emergency Manager and others in your jurisdiction who need to know what you and your ARES/RACES group are contributing to your community each month.  

The following is a repeat from last month’s Section News, but it is still applicable:  

We are seeing a definite trend for EC’s to not submit their FSD 212 reports. Of late, the typical reporting response from the EC’s in Michigan is around 25% and falling. As an EC, part of your responsibility is to report the activity of those hams in your county. We know that the FSD 212 reporting spreadsheet is not a favorite with the EC’s around the state, but for now it is what we have to work with. An online form is on the way and we ask your patience while it is being developed.  

Reporting activity is incredibly important. By not reporting the monthly activity of your team, you are denying them the credit and recognition they deserve for their efforts. We routinely ask our folks to spend their own time and money to train, prepare and participate in a number of potential events and then we are not willing to recognize those efforts by filling out a simple form once a month.

Not reporting gives everyone the impression that your program does not exist and hence, reliability and willingness to provide service when needed is questionable. Leadership requires seeing the big picture and acting accordingly.   If you have difficulty with how to report and how to complete the FSD 212 form, assistance is as close as your District EC or your Section EC. If you don’t know who these folks are, you can locate them here: http://ares-mi.org/ECcontact.php. They stand ready to help you.  

Until next time,  

73,  

Larry