News
Congratulations to Harold McMullen KE5WCQ for upgrading to general, to Bryan Loper KG5VDK and 16-year-old Jake Stegall KG5VDL for passing their technician! Special thanks to all the VEs who volunteered with the test sessions.
Danny Richard KG5ESG was appointed the new ARES Emergency Coordinator for Cass and Morris County on June 21. Danny got to work on implementing a county emergency communications plan for the counties. Jim Collom N5YU donated a dedicated ARES repeater that provides wide coverage for both counties.
November marks the final formal club meeting each year for the RACC. The 2017 officers were elected, and the 2016 RACC Christmas Party plans were finalized to be held at the Champions Bible Church on Saturday, December 17, 2016 at 6:30pm.
An unusual band opening on 2 meters allowed for FM contacts to be made on simplex and repeaters further than two hundred miles away late Wednesday night and early Thursday morning (16-17 November 2016).
The ARRL sent a mass email soliciting member support and action to encourage elected representatives to vote in favor of the Amateur Radio Parity Act. The league has made it easy by pre-loading a form on a website where members can type in their information, and an email is sent to the appropriate representatives.
You can help, too! Go to: https://arrl.rallycongress.net/ctas/urge-us-senate-to-pass-amateur-radio-parity-act
I went to the link and followed the instructions with a small twist...
It's Logical! New Newsletter Feature
"There's a lot of logic that is evaluated in the script for each member," said Jerry A. Goodson W5BFF. "The idea came to me when I discovered a couple of members' amateur radio license had expired, and they didn't even know it."
The script systematically checks information and generates the appropriate responses when the newsletter is generated. It's automated and personalized to each recipient.
First, the script checks the amateur radio license. If the recipient is not a licensed amateur radio operator, a link to our Training Resources section is presented, along with encouragement to study for, and pass the examination.
If the recipient is a licensed amateur radio operator, basic license information is presented. The script checks the expiration date. The recipient is alerted if the license is up for renewal or expired. If the recipient has less than an Amateur Extra class license, a link to our Training Resources section is provided with encouragement to test and upgrade.
After all checks with the license are complete, the script moves on to check club membership status. If the recipient is not a club member, the script terminates. If the recipient is a club member, the script checks the expiration and membership level, then provides the appropriate response. If a membership is expired, the recipient is encouraged to renew their membership. If the membership is current, the recipients gets a check mark and is notified the duration of their current membership.
Finally, if the recipient is a club member, their status as a member of the ARRL is checked based on the information in the RACC club database.
"The RACC is an ARRL Affiliated Club, and we encourage our members to support the ARRL," explained Goodson. We don't want to 'shame' or 'pressure' anybody, so the system is designed to discreetly encourage membership. The club is expected to file an annual report with the ARRL, and the system makes that process easier. Ultimately, this script was written for benefit of each recipient. It's a unique benefit of receiving the RACC Newsletter that I haven't seen anywhere else."