73rd Annual BERRYVILLE HAMFEST and ARRL Virginia State Convention were great!
Update and pictures. See you next year August 3!

From Amateur Radio Newsline .org

 It was a contact made barely a month ago between Pennsylvania high school students and astronauts aboard the International Space Station. This was a contact, however, with something that set it apart from many. 

Like so many other of the hundreds of contacts that have been made over the years between students and ISS astronauts, the well-publicized QSO with Harbor Creek High School near Erie, Pennsylvania relied on the support of the volunteers and staff who are part of Amateur Radio on the International Space Station. They assisted with scheduling and helped coordinate the contact with NASA mission control in Houston. This was a very different QSO, however: About three-quarters of the participating high school students were licensed amateur radio operators – young hams who developed, built, installed and operated the radio systems in preparation for this high-profile contact. They even assembled the antennas that were installed on the school building’s roof.

In other words, this was a direct contact between the school and the ISS, with no telebridge or phone patch to serve as the customary go-between.

This kind of hands-on student involvement is uncommon in the long history of ARISS and its 1600 or so educational contacts, according to Frank Bauer, KA3HDO, executive director of ARISS-USA. He told Newsline in an email that ARISS strongly encourages this kind of hands-on student involvement but doesn’t see it often. He told Newsline:  “It is a rarity to be celebrated.”

Frank said that, working with education lead and assistant principal Drew Mortensen AC3DS, the teens in the Harbor Creek Advanced Technologies Group handled the ISS satellite operations on their own. Watching the contact happen, ARISS technical mentor Gordon Scannell, KD8COJ, told the local newspaper:  “They’ve done this, they know how to do this.” [endquote]

The result was a QSO with Commander Andreas Mogensen, KG5GCZ. It was arranged by ARISS and NASA, but made by students — and this was a contact the nation, if not the world, got to watch.

Related Links: 

Harbor Creek High School: https://sr.hcsd.iu5.org/

ARISS – Amateur Radio on the International Space Station: https://www.ariss.org/

If your school would like a presentation about amateur radio, please contact us. 

From ARRL.org

ARRL Education and Learning Manager, and IARU Region 2 Youth Coordinator, Steve Goodgame, K5ATA, gave the keynote address at the 2023 ARRL Pacific Division Ham Radio Convention, also known as Pacificon.

Goodgame was a public-school teacher for 21 years. He carries his experience of bringing ham radio into the classroom into his role at ARRL. “It is safe to say I’ve learned a thing or two about reaching youth along the way,” he quipped.

His presentation, to a packed audience, was a highlight of the convention. Goodgame’s passion and vision for promoting youth involvement in the hobby shined in his speech as he discussed STEM education and the importance of inspiring youth and teachers to engage in amateur radio and wireless technology.

Watch “A Vision of the Future of Amateur Radio” on the ARRLHQ YouTube Channel https://youtu.be/fTi8LDz4dS4?si=GQfSd3k2BS__ERMy to learn how to grow the next generation of radio amateurs from one of the leaders in the space.

About Amateur Radio and ARRL 

Amateur Radio Service licensees use their training, skills, and equipment to practice radio communications and develop radio technology. Amateur Radio Operators volunteer their qualifications and equipment for communications duty in public service and during emergencies. Amateur Radio also provides a basis for hands-on STEM education and pathways to careers. 

ARRL  The National Association for Amateur Radio® was founded in 1914 as The American Radio Relay League, and is a noncommercial organization of Radio Amateurs. ARRL numbers within its ranks the vast majority of active Radio Amateurs (or “hams”) in the US and has a proud history of achievement as the standard-bearer in promoting and protecting Amateur Radio. For more information about ARRL and Amateur Radio, visit www.arrl.org.

More about the Pacificon Conference of Radio Amateurs: https://www.pacificon.org/

For Questions Contact:

K04GLN, McKenzie Denton

ARRL Virginia Section Youth Coordinator

KO4GLN@arrl.net

(757) 560 3901

Intrepid-DX Group, a US-based 501 C (3) nonprofit organization passionate about promoting Amateur Radio activities worldwide, is launching its 4th Annual Youth “Dream Rig” Essay Contest. This initiative is of great importance in recognizing youth who are unquestionably the future of our beloved hobby.

Here’s a brief overview of the contest:

Contest Theme: “What attracted you to amateur radio?”

Prizes:

1. First Place: ICOM IC-7300

2. Second Place: ICOM ID5100AD dual band mobile radio with D-Star

3. Third Place: ICOM ID52A dual band handy talkie with D-Star

Contest Rules:

1. Two-page essay addressing the contest theme.

2. Contestants must hold a USA or Canadian Amateur Radio License and be aged 19 or younger.

3. Commitment to keep the radio for at least one year and use it on the air.

4. Essays can be submitted in plain text, PDF, or MS Word format to intrepiddxgroup@gmail.com by November 30, 2023. Alternatively, physical submissions can be mailed to The Intrepid-DX Group, 3052 Wetmore Dr, San Jose, CA 95148, USA (must be postmarked by November 30, 2022).

5. Previous contestants are welcome to participate, provided all other criteria are met.

The winners will be announced on their Website and Facebook page on December 15, 2023. They will also be asked to provide a photo with their prize.

We would be immensely grateful if you could assist us in spreading the word about this exciting contest by sharing the attached flyer in your club’s newsletter or through any other means that reach the youth amateur radio operators in your area.

While membership in the ARRL is not a requirement for entry, we understand that many youths are affiliated with local clubs and may not come across our announcement on other platforms.

For any questions or clarifications, please feel free to reach out to intrepiddxgroup@gmail.com.

Congratulations to W0AAE, Kees [pronounced Case] Van Oosbree of Maple Grove, Minnesota. Kees has been selected as Amateur Radio Newsline’s [arnewsline.org] 2023 Bill Pasternak WA6ITF Memorial Amateur Radio Newsline Young Ham of the Year.

Kees is a recent graduate of Heritage Christian Academy in Maple Grove, MN where he earned a membership in the National Honor Society and was recognized as valedictorian of his class. Kees currently holds a General class license and is a member of the Minnesota Wireless Association [https://www.w0aa.org]

Kees remembers his interest in amateur radio began during a visit to a museum when he was 12 years old. In that museum was an amateur radio, and the display demonstrated how radio allowed communications to happen. Kees was hooked and immediately started studying for his first license. He also remembers hearing HF radio for the first time. His interest led to learning about remote operating and reaching out to W2RE, Ray Higgins, who has become an Elmer in the area of remote/DX operating.

Kees has been active with YOTA – Youth on the Air and has taken a variety of leadership roles within the organization, including training of youth operators. He is also interested in remote operating and chasing DX. Presently he has 165 DXCC’s.

He will be presented his Award at the Huntsville HamFest August 19th.

Kees begins his studies of Aerospace Engineering at Iowa State University in August, and will be taking his HF rig with him.

Send Congratulations to Kees via his QRZ page: https://www.qrz.com/db/W0AAE

Press Release: https://www.arnewsline.org/2023-yhoty

 From Amateur Radio Newsline – 

“Really? Oh, my God!”

That was the reaction of Audrey McElroy KM4BUN after learning she had been selected as the recipient of Newsline’s Young Ham of the Year award.

Audrey, of Cumming, Georgia, is the daughter of Thomas McElroy, W4SDR, and Janet McElroy, K4PRM. Her brother, Jack, is KM4ZIA.

Audrey is 18 and an honor student who graduated in June from Forsyth Central High School in Cumming, Georgia. She already has begun computer science studies at Georgia Tech.

She credits her parents with generating her early interest in amateur radio.

“By the age of like 3 or 4, I was out there helping my dad put antennas up, run coax in the hot summer heat,” she recalls. “And, I became so fascinated looking into the radios.”

Audrey passed her Tech test in June 2014 at the age of 10, took her General license exam a few years later, and passed her Extra test on Election Night 2016 at the age of 13.

In 2019, Audrey was invited to join the Dave Kalter Memorial Youth DX Adventure to Curacao.

“Probably one of the best experiences in my life, not only in amateur radio but overall,” she recalls. “We were so blessed to be able to use the PJ2T station.

“And we spent day and night making contacts. We broke the record for the number of contacts made. I think we made over 65-hundred contacts in just the span of really just a few days when you count up all the hours.”

Audrey says she put her love of amateur radio together with her pursuit of biotechnology STEM studies in high school to produce a senior capstone project that involved a high-altitude balloon launch.

Her payload was small roundworms or C elegans.

“My whole project was launching them up to 100,000 feet, which I calculated using the amount of helium and everything,” she explains. “And at the same time, I was taking measurements and readings about the pressure and the temperature.”

But this was not her first launch. She credits her mentor, Bill Brown, WB8ELK, a NASA engineer, with helping her achieve success in launching several high-altitude and orbiting balloons including one that circled the globe nearly five times.

Audrey has made presentations during forums in Dayton, Huntsville, and for the Youth on the Air camp. Audrey says promoting amateur radio is a big part of her immediate future.

“Now I kind of make it my mission to bring more youth and especially women into amateur radio and STEM,” she says.

Audrey will receive her award on Saturday, Aug. 20 during ceremonies at the Huntsville Hamfest in the Von Braun Center in Huntsville, Alabama.

Congratulations and Best Wishes Audrey!