07/22/2009 | Scouts from the Uwharrie district in the Old North State Council participated in a JOTA camporee held at Camp Woodfield near Asheboro North Carolina.

Scouts learned about Ham Radio through 7 activity stations. At one activity scouts eagerly learned Morse code and later after the camp fire ceremony they participated in a flash light Morse code challenge. There was a tower building activity where scouts using scout lashing skills, wood and bamboo poles constructed an antenna tower. Surprisingly these towers ranged from around 30 feet to 47 feet tall! At the antenna launch activity scouts learned how Ham Operators use homemade gizmos to launch a line high into the tops of trees to hoist a wire antenna into operating position. Scout learned how scout knots are used to secure the antenna into place and hold everything together. At the build a backpack-able antenna activity scouts learned about electronics and constructed a working antenna for their unit in the process. A soldering demonstration and a review of basic antenna concepts were included to help scouts learn how radio actually works. The Radio Merit badge activity station helped scouts gain knowledge about Ham Radio required for their merit badge and complimented the knowledge they were picking up participating in the other activities. The Lost Scout activity helped scouts understand how a GPS unit connected to a mobile transceiver can be utilized to help with search and rescue operations. Once the lost Scout was found Scouts had to demonstrate first aid skills they learned as part of their rank advancements. The Talk Radio activity is where Ham Radio operators assisted Scout contacts over the radio. 4 separate radio stations allowed Scouts to talk over Amateur Radio to other hams and Scouts around the world. Hams utilized many modes of operation including Morse code, Phone, Digital and Winlink. Thanks to the great support of local Ham Radio operators every Scout had the opportunity to communicate over the radio.

83 Scouts and 32 adult Scout leaders participated in this years JOTA weekend. 10 Ham radio operators participated in the event and many more participated in the planning and preparation process. At this point 45 Radio Merit Badge applications were successfully completed and if our informal polling process is accurate then over 50% of the Scouts polled indicated that they were interested in pursuing their own Amateur Radio operator license. We intend to follow up with a Tech License class offered to Scouts and leaders while the interest level is still high. This was our best JOTA effort yet! -- KI4NCQ