November 21, 2023 Weekly This & That Newsletter

Happy Thanksgiving to All!

Moon Bounce Outing This Saturday

On Saturday, November 25th, our club will have a station on the air during the ARRL EME Contest. Thanks to Frank Pollino, K2OS, for leading this effort.

The club received permission to utilize the parking area at the Veterans Memorial Field Parking Lot to set up a small station. It will consist of a Kenwood TS-2000 transceiver, a 400W amplifier, and a 12-element yagi antenna with a mount that enables us to “shoot at the moon”. We will operate on 144 MHz using the WSJT JT65B digital mode.

The moon rise is at 4:00PM EST and we expect to operate for a few hours as the moon rises to approximately 40 degrees at 7:00PM. As such, don’t feel that you have to be at the event at 4 PM sharp! You can get there later but please don’t show up at 7 PM and wonder where everyone went! Some of us might still be there but we will most likely begin to take things down at that point.

Bring a chair and your favorite beverage. We will look to get some snacks there as well and maybe some food. But don’t count on it as this is our club’s first time doing an after-hours outside event in a while.

We are DEFINITELY playing this event “BY EAR”. It will be what it will be.

It should be very interesting and fun!

From the Earth to the Moon and Back…Saturday…starting at 4 PM and going at least until 7 PM…at the SCHH softball field parking lot on the South Side.

Hopefully, we will see some signals decoded on the laptop screen and possibly make a contact or two with very large stations who are active during this contest.

Club Logo Contest Update

The club’s Logo Contest is in full swing! We now have three entries. Entry No. 3 is shown below.

The Club is planning to purchase a new banner that includes the full name of our organization and a new club logo.

The new club logo will be selected from entries to a contest that will end on December 31, 2023.

Please send YOUR ENTRY soon! Think about it: How many times have you had in your life to do this kind of thing?

The entries to the contest will be judged by all members. Each member will have one vote that identifies the best logo in that member’s opinion. The votes will be tallied in early January 2024. It is hoped that the winner of the contest can be announced at our January 4th Membership Meeting at the Lakehouse.

Holiday Dinner Celebration – December 7th at Jameson’s, Hidden Cypress

Club members and guests are invited to a “Dutch Treat” holiday dinner at Jameson’s (Hidden Cypress) on Thursday, December 7th. We will be seated at 6:30 PM. Everyone will order their own meals and drinks and will receive individual or couples’ checks for their orders.

There will be door prizes and a “gift exchange” is planned. Participation in the gift exchange is encouraged but not required. If you bring a gift, you’ll be eligible to get a gift. Cash value of new items should not exceed $25. If you have ham radio items around the shack that you are not using, you could also package one of them up and use that as your “gift”.

During the evening, we will recognize members who are present who have made significant contributions to the SCHH ARC during the past year or two or so.

Space is limited so please reserve early by contacting Harve Hnatiuk (hnat463@gmail.com).

To date, we have 16 members and guests who have reserved: Bob Officer (2), Ken Finke (1), Charlie Bess (1), Lon Seward (2), Ron Frick (1), Chip Miller (2), Bob McCormick (1), Jack Frisch (2), Ed Stratton (1), John Tregenza (1), Harve Hnatiuk (2).

Hope to see you there with a gift for the exchange!

Next Membership Meeting – January 4, 2024 at the Lakehouse

Our January 4th meeting will start at 7 PM with a presentation on the ARRL’s “Logbook of The World” by Ken Finke, KN8F. The regular membership meeting will follow Ken’s presentation.

Hope to see you in early 2024!

Club Website

Click here to get to the Club’s website: https://www.ke4ham.org.  If you notice any errors or have site-related questions, email: webmaster@ke4ham.org.

SCHH ARC Nets:

Sunday NET (8 PM) operates on 147.550 MHz simplex and EchoLink node: KE4HAM – L

Wednesday Nets (8 PM) operates from KK4ONF/Jasper repeater, 147.060+ and EchoLink node: KE4HAM-R

Thanks to our regular Net Controls: Bob Officer, WA6WAY; Russ Treadwell, N1ZK; and Harve Hnatiuk, KB3FW.

Thanks to Ron Frick, AI4HH, for keeping the nets on EchoLink.

Net Control Schedule:

— Wednesday, November 22, 8 PM EDT: Russ Treadwell, N1ZK

— Sunday, November 26, 8 PM EDT: Bob Officer, WA6WAY

If you are interested in being a Net Control, please let Ron or Harve know.

SCHH ARC Net Reports:

Thanks to ALL who checked in to our SCHH ARC nets last week.
If you have the time, please check into our club’s nets on a regular basis.

Even if you don’t think you have much to say when you check in, “Hello, and hope everyone is doing well” is a good start, right?

Beyond that, as you “read the mail”, hearing what others are contributing to our collective knowledge-base and providing personal updates, you may find that you DO have a few things to say!

Last week’s check-ins and traffic:

— Wednesday, November 15: KE4HAM/KB3FW (Net Control), AI4HH, WA2LWO, AA4KK, K2ITZ, KJ4BSM, WA6WAY, KZ4JIM, KQ4JKI, KM4GGH. QNI=10, QTC=0.

— Sunday, November 19: KE4HAM/WA6WAY (Net Control), AI4HH, K2ITZ, KN4VWQ, KB3FW, WB1DXN. QNI=6, QTC=0.

Note – QNI = Number of Check-ins to the net, including Net Control; QTC = Traffic handled (Radiograms).

Other Operating:

Daily —  DX spotting and open chat 24/7 on 147.550 MHz simplex and the Jasper Repeater, 147.060+ (no Echolink).

KB3FW – SCHH ARC President