Message from RST President, Joe K3TYE
The Radio Society of Tucson had one terrific year in 2023; this club and a lot of its members are really “radio active.” Did you know that the Radio Society of Tucson has over 190 members? Really? WOW! Here is a summary of what I think are some of the greatest accomplishments.
1.) Volunteerism. Volunteerism is at an all-time high within RST. It seems that I as president, no longer have to beg to get folks to volunteer to run club events. With the help of these volunteers, we did the following:
2.) RST Website. Another WOW! Earlier this year RST members took on the task of upgrading, revamping, rebuilding, etc. the RST website. Your radio club has a team dedicated to keeping the website up to date and adding new items as soon as the info becomes available. There is no doubt in my mind that the RST website contributes significantly to the success and growth of the club. Many thanks to Ana Blum WV3RSE, Jason Ninneman KL3PD, David Bjorgaard K7ACE, and Ken Boyd N7NBV.
And how about the RST’s Facebook presence; many thanks to Marcia Burcham KF7DYW for keeping our Facebook information up to date.
3.) Radio Classes. Club members Ken Lesniak N7AKL and Frank Billock KJ7NCD conducted two Technician level classes in 2023. Each class was six weeks long and was scheduled to coincide with the free VE test sessions that RST sponsors. The first class started in February and the second in October. A total of 23 students attended the classes. Several of the students have joined RST and one, Ana WV3RSE, is a volunteer on the RST website design team.
4.) Hamfest. RST volunteers put on two very successful hamfests in 2023. It is difficult for a radio club to even stage one hamfest, but we do two. Both brought in about 50 tailgaters, several commercial vendors, and a couple of hundred operators and spectators looking for a bargain or just to meet with old friends. And we still offer FREE admission. Bruce WA1BZQ reserves the location for us. Meanwhile, Randy KE7KEQ, Marcia KF7DYW, Doug KC7LIN, and Rosie KI7VBT handle the in-person raffle ticket sales.
5.) Radio Days in the Park. The “Days in the Park” event at Reid Park was brought back to life this summer by Don Ernle KD7UIZ. The event is currently being coordinated by Kirk W0PSN. This event does attract a significant number of “old-timers” and new operators. The usual theme is setting up your station and testing antennas. Many new hams have made their very first contact at the RST’s Radio Days in the Park.
6.) ARRL June Field Day. Each year RST participates in the ARRL Field Day has a joint venture with the Catalina Radio Club. Thank you to Avery Davis WB4RTP for taking over as the chairman for this event. The port-a-potties showed up on time and in the right place. A lot of contacts were made. Boy Scout Troop 157 supported the event with food and the GOTA station. Best of all, several of us got there early enough to reserve most of the hilltop.
7.) Beginner’s Net. We started a beginner’s net on Thursday evening to get new licensees on the air. (147.000 MHz, CTCSS 110.9). After a rocky start, we now have had a total of 21 people check into the net, and in the last couple of weeks seven to eight participants. The discussions have been engaging and informative. As one new ham, Barbara KB7RVH said, “It’s the fastest half-hour in radio!” All are welcome to join, please do!
8.) Laurel VEC and the RST VE Test Team. The longest-running Special Interest Group within the club is our RST VE test team managed by Diane Zimmerman AA3OF and Richard Jones W0PZD. The team consists of about eight volunteers who administer the Technician, General, and Extra test on the second Monday of every month. I estimate that about 250 tests were given during 2023. That’s a lot of work.
9.) Monthly Meetings. In 2019, twenty people at an RST monthly meeting was considered a good turnout. Fifteen, 16, or 17 was the norm. We are now more than 50 members plus additional non-members attending the monthly meetings at the Golden Corral. Thank you David K7ACE for lining up interesting speakers. Also thanks to Kirk W0PSN for improving the sound system.
10) Special Event Support. Our members are active in supporting the community. Cary Fishman, WB2BSJ, coordinated support for El Tour de Tucson. David, K7ACE coordinated radio support for The Celtic Festival of Tucson. Jason, KL3PD volunteered for radio communications at Colossal-Vail, 50/50.
11.) RST Board of Directors. The RST Board of Directors are an amazing team. RST thanks the board for their support of RST’s various projects, their suggestions and constructive criticisms. A special thanks goes out to RST treasurer Harold Hallikainen W6IWI for his accounting skills and improvements made to the “New Membership” and “Renew Membership” pages on the RST website
WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE, 2024
As we look to 2024 I would like to:
- Add a special event with event call signs and QSL cards. Perhaps commemorating an Arizona special event or holiday. The special event stations could be something like K7S, K7N, K7A, K7K, and K7E. Each QSL card would picture an Arizona snake. The challenge is to collect all five. How about commemorating the founding of the Sonoran Desert Museum or the Saguaro National Park? Let’s discuss it!
- Work on growing some of our less active special interest groups and increase involvement.
- Continue to grow our member participation, and continue to be an active advocate and educational club for amateur radio.
It’s clear that 2023 has been a year of growth in numbers, growth in involvement, and growth in impact. Thank you all for making 2023 a great year for RST.
Wishing you all a healthy 2024!
73 . . . Joe K3TYE
K7RST President Pro Tempore
WN7BSA Trustee