December 18, 2017

Changes Coming to the Amateur Radio Emergency Service

The Amateur Radio Emergency Service® (ARES) has been the public service communications program of the ARRL since 1935. Over the program’s eight decades it has occasionally undergone updates to make sure it meets the needs of partners at all levels, adjusts to changes in the Amateur Radio Service, and incorporate lessons learned from emergency and disaster activations. However, the last major update to ARES occurred more than 40 years ago, and it is quite clear that a lot has changed since then.

So, two years ago, the ARRL board of directors created the Public Service Enhancement Working Group to study the ARRL’s public service offerings and recommend changes and improvements. The working group focused on many areas including training, volunteer management, field organization positions, and mission – all areas of concern brought to the board and staff’s attention from those in the field. The recommendations were vetted through a peer review group of field organization volunteers and readied for implementation.

In the months ahead, you will receive information on enhancements coming to the ARES program, including:

• A new national mission statement for ARES
• New national training requirements and local training resources for ARES
• Updated field organization job descriptions
• Improved ARES operating guidelines
• New ARES group benefits
• A new volunteer management system – ARES Connect

The first step in the next evolution of ARES is group identification. Currently there is no way to identify ARES groups or their associated volunteers with a searchable unique designator, which makes reporting and accountability difficult. Beginning January 1, 2018 ARES groups will need to sign up for their unique ARES identification number. This number will be utilized by the ARES Connect system and provide ARES groups with unique benefits (think club affiliation, but for ARES!).

Once ARES groups receive their identification numbers they will be eligible for benefits including:

• ARES book sets (great for the EOC or Red Cross radio room)
• New ham referral
• Early access to the annual ARES Report
• Email forwarding, which will provide ARES groups that have a club callsign with a uniform “call sign@arrl.net“
• More to come!

Groups that will need an ARES identification number include local level (city/county/district) and section level. Information about the ARES identification application process will be sent out the week before the application system opens.

If you have any questions, please contact ARRL Emergency Preparedness Manager Mike Corey, KI1U, ki1u@arrl.org

ARRL Public Service Enhancement Working Group
Dale Williams, WA8EFK
Chairman

It is with a heavy heart that I report the passing of Jeff Haney, AF7JX on Wednesday August 16, 2017.  Jeff fought a short battle with cancer.

Jeff was an excellent operator, mentor, Elmer and friend.  He served as an officer in the Bonner County Amateur Radio Club, a VE, Net Control operator for the club, ARES and AmRRON.  He took great pride in helping his community and he left big shoes to fill.

Please keep Karla, KG7NUP in your thought and prayers during this difficult time.  Jeff always enjoyed our trip to Dubs after a meeting for ice cream – so have an ice cream in Jeff’s memory next time you pass Dubs.

When: First Class will meet on September 14, 2017 at 6:30 pm

Classes will be held on September 14th, 21st, 28th, and October 5th (Total of 4 classes) All classes meet at 6:30 pm and will last for 1 ½ to 2 hours.

Where: All classes will be held at the LDS Church Building (location is between Les Schwab and Albeni Falls Dam) Address: 13261 Highway 2, Oldtown, ID 83822

Brief discussion about the Ham Radio Class and Licensing Requirements: The class is offered at no charge (free). Study material is recommended (see below). We will cover all of the information you will need to pass the 35 question FCC Licensing Exam. Cost for the exam is $5.00. Access to a computer and the internet is recommended. Material presented in class will be sent to all attending by email. A valid email address will be needed to receive the class material. Practice exams can be taken on the internet to prepare for the FCC Exam.

Study Material: Those preparing for the FCC Technician Ham Radio Licensing Exam should obtain a copy of the ARRL Technician License Manual (make sure you get the 3rd edition for Level 1; Technician). Amazon.com cost is $26.96

Class size is limited to 20. Please register to reserve your seat. The best way to register is to send an email to Warren Weber: hro.n7web@gmail.com

Amateur Radio “Field Day” Demonstrates Science, Skill, and Service

Members of the Bonner County ARES/RACES team will be participating in the national Amateur Radio Field Day exercise. Since 1933, ham radio operators across North America have established temporary ham radio stations in public locations during Field Day to showcase the science and skill of Amateur Radio. This event is open to the public and all are encouraged to attend.

Date: June 24 & 25, 2017 (runs 24 hours, starting 11:00 a.m. Saturday)
Location: 465838 US-95, Sagle, ID (at Dufort Rd on the NW corner; enter from Hwy 95).

For more than 100 years, Amateur Radio — sometimes called ham radio — has allowed people from all walks of life to experiment with electronics and communications techniques, as well as provide a free public service to their communities during a disaster, all without needing a cell phone or the Internet. Field Day demonstrates ham radio’s ability to work reliably under any conditions from almost any location and create an independent communications network. Over 35,000 people from thousands of locations participated in Field Day in 2016.

“It’s easy for anyone to pick up a computer or smartphone, connect to the Internet and communicate, with no knowledge of how the devices function or connect to each other,” said Sean Kutzko of the American Radio Relay League, the national association for Amateur Radio. “But if there’s an interruption of service or you’re out of range of a cell tower, you have no way to communicate. Ham radio functions completely independent of the Internet or cell phone infrastructure, can interface with tablets or smartphones, and can be set up almost anywhere in minutes. That’s the beauty of Amateur Radio during a communications outage.”

“Hams can literally throw a wire in a tree for an antenna, connect it to a battery-powered transmitter and communicate halfway around the world,” Kutzko added. “Hams do this by using a layer of Earth’s atmosphere as a sort of mirror for radio waves. In today’s electronic do-it-yourself (DIY) environment, ham radio remains one of the best ways for people to learn about electronics, physics, meteorology, and numerous other scientific disciplines, and is a huge asset to any community during disasters if the standard communication infrastructure goes down.”

Anyone may become a licensed Amateur Radio operator. There are over 725,000 licensed hams in the United States, as young as 5 and as old as 100. It’s easy for anybody to get involved right here in Bonner County. For more information about Field Day, contact Lori Holten [email] or visit http://arrl.org/what-is-ham-radio.

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ARES® and Amateur Radio Emergency Service® are trademarks of the Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL). Radio Amateur Civil Emergency Service (RACES) was created by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Release date:  July 18, 2014
Release Number:  HQ-2014-51

Hartford, Conn. – Today, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) announced a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) that increases cooperation between FEMA and ARRL in the area of disaster communication.  FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate, KK4INZ, and ARRL President Kay Craigie, N3KN, signed the agreement during the ARRL National Centennial Convention at the Connecticut Convention Center in Hartford, Connecticut.