Virginia Section of the ARRL June Section Manager’s Report (Covering May)

++Safety Note++

Field Day is here, and with it brings lots of activity. Make sure that you have checked for power lines above and below ground. An improperly placed ground anchor can have as much if not more of an impact than overhead lines. Below ground can be power lines, communications lines, and gas pipelines. Be safe, and have fun!

++Affiliated Club Coordinator++

Mike WA8AHZ, our Affiliated Club Coordinator reports:

Thanks to all you all who responded to the ARRL’s member dues survey.  The ARRL leadership team is pouring over your comments, and your voice will make a difference as ARRL plans ahead. 

The Volunteers on the Air (VOTA) operating event continues for the entire calendar year, and W1AW/4 is currently ranked #2 on the ARRL VOTA leaderboard.  See: https://vota.arrl.org/leaderboard.php  Of course, this is the culminative of all the Sections in the 4 Call area activating as W1AW/4.  If you didn’t activate W1AW/4 (VA) in March, you’ll have another opportunity in late October.  More to follow, and thanks to the Sterling Park for their efforts organizing the March Virginia activation of W1AW/4.

++Get On The Air For Life (GOTA For Life) Initiative++

++Upcoming Events++

Field Day! 

June 24^th and 25^th

Field Day is our “open house”. It’s our time to show the public what we can do, not just when it comes to making contact with each other over the radio, but also how we can help our communities with training, education, advocacy, and public service. Put on your best face, and smile! Set up in a public place and welcome people to see what we can do. And of course, have fun! And make sure and publicize the heck out of your location. Make sure you post your location to the ARRL Field Day Locator at https://www.arrl.org/field-day-locator. Make sure that your location is correct on the locator. Wear a badge, put up flags and banners, and make sure that your talk-in is staffed. Have someone greet everyone who shows up, and give them the opportunity to operate. And remember, when posting to social media, use the hashtag #ARRLFD to receive 100 bonus points.

+++Hamfests+++

08/05/2023 - Roanoke Hamfest

Location: Vinton, VA
Type: ARRL Hamfest
Sponsor: Roanoke Valley Amateur Radio Club
Website: https://roanokehamfest.info/

08/06/2023 - 72nd Annual Berryville Hamfest

Location: Berryville , VA
Type: ARRL Hamfest
Sponsor: Shenandoah Valley Amateur Radio Club,Inc
Website: http://berryvillehamfest.com

08/12/2023 - Tidewater Hamfest and Swap Meet

Location: Portsmouth, VA
Type: ARRL Hamfest
Sponsor: TRCI
Website: http://VirginiaBeachHamfest.com

For more information see: https://www.arrl.org/hamfests/search

We currently do not have a Section Convention host, and there are currently no other hamfests or conventions in the Commonwealth. Please submit any requests for an ARRL sanctioned event, go to http://arrl.org/arrl-sanctioned-events and follow the instructions there. Remember that all of the requests go through the Section Manager and the Division Director, so allow for plenty of time for these to be reviewed. Please reach out to me if you’d like to get your club (or combination of clubs) to host the Section Convention.

+++Contest Calendar+++

Don't forget our year-long Volunteers On The Air Event
https://vota.arrl.org

June 2023

10-12   June VHF  http://www.arrl.org/june-vhf
17         Kids Day  http://www.arrl.org/kids-day
24-25   Field Day  http://www.arrl.org/field-day

July 2023

8-9   IARU HF World Championship http://www.arrl.org/iaru-hf-world-championship

August 2023

5-6        222 MHz and Up Distance Contest   http://www.arrl.org/222-mhz-and-up-distance-contest       19-20   10 GHz & Up – Round 1  http://www.arrl.org/10-ghz-up
20         Rookie Roundup – RTTY http://www.arrl.org/rookie-roundup
12-13   EME - 2.3 GHz & Up http://www.arrl.org/eme-contest

++Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES)++

Big news!

The ARRL/FEMA Memoranda Of Agreement (MOA) has been signed and published. This is a very big deal, and of note is that an MOA is a much more formal document than a Memorandum of Understanding. This demonstrates the continuing and increasing value of amateur radio, and in particular the great strides that the ARES program has made in becoming a more highly trained and relevant tool in the event of a widespread emergency or disaster.

Also, the ARRL has been elected to serve on SAFECOM. From the press release:

“The National Association for Amateur Radio® has been elected to serve on SAFECOM®. SAFECOM is a group of national thought leaders and officials within the emergency communications and response space that works to set standards used at every level. The program is managed by the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), an agency of the US Department of Homeland Security.

SAFECOM sets the standards of interoperability procedures, and ARRL being a part of the group solidifies the Amateur Radio Service as a robust resource before and during times of crisis.”

+++ARES May Report+++

The ARES Monthly Report will be sent out as a separate document beginning this month. It will go both via the ARRL mailing list and to ARES Leadership for further distribution.

++Section Manager Close-out++

As I said last month, with Field Day coming up, make sure you tout your local achievements, and when possible, the achievements of the Section as a whole. The more we’re used, the more we’re asked for. The more we’re asked for, the more relevant we become. Don’t be silent about your achievements or capabilities.

As always, if you have any questions or concerns, feel free to reach out to me.

73,

Jack KE4LWT