Category: Minutes

Subject: Meeting Minutes of February 2, 2016

The February meeting was called to order by President Jim, N7US at 7:00 p.m. on February 2, 2016 in the Crystal Lake Bank meeting room.

The Pledge of Allegiance kicked off the meeting, led by Jim, N7US.

President Jim extended a welcome and asked if there were visitors or guests present. Mike KC9TCW from Woodstock and Craig (no call) from Woodstock were visitors.

Introductions around the room followed. Thirty-three people were in attendance for the meeting.

President Jim encouraged all to join the club Yahoo reflector, K9RN, visit the club website at mcwa.org, and join the MCWA Facebook page to keep up on club news and information.

The minutes from the January meeting were published for review on the club website by Secretary Roger, KF9D. Dave, N9ITE moved to accept the minutes as published, seconded by Dave, KD9ESL. The motion passed by voice vote.

Treasurer Joe, N9OK reported a balance of roughly $5,000 in the club treasury. Paid membership for 2016 is now up to 60 members. Dues for the calendar year 2016 are now being accepted. John, K9JK made a motion to accept the treasurer’s report, seconded by Dave, NT9E. The motion passed by voice vote.

Jack, W9MU, reminded the club that the “Introduction to Amateur Radio” class at McHenry County Community College will begin February 18 and continue for 5 consecutive Thursday evenings. Twenty general information amateur radio topics will be presented in the course. Jack has contacted 20 northern Illinois radio clubs to gain publicity for the classes, as well as putting a notice in the NW Herald events section. Cost is $49 for an adult and $15 for a student.

Ray, N9RWC informed the club that the K9ESV emergency services group had recently sponsored a “ham cram” course with 13 people participating. A testing session followed the course with 12 of the attendees successfully passing the licensing test.

President Jim noted that the club has a collection of radio library information, and will contact Marty, W9MLP to confirm that he is in possession of the material.

On the topic of Field Day, a new site is likely needed for this year as most of the area where the club operated the previous 2 years has been turned into farm fields. Club members should research any appropriate sites and discuss these at the March meeting. Ideas can be floated on the club email reflector for comments.

Dave, K9RUF commented that he was given a tour of WB9Z’s impressive station. Dave also noted the great website maintained by WB9Z.

On the topic of operating activities, it was noted that the South Georgia Island Dxpedition, VP8SGI is currently underway. The DXpedition to Palmyra Island, K5P, has recently concluded. Up-to-date DX information can be obtained from DailyDX.com.

Upcoming hamfests were discussed, including Radio Expo at Belvidere on Sept. 24^th. See QST for further hamfest details.

Under old business, Mike, WB8BZK inquired about who held the file for the club brochure. Dave, N9ITE offered that he has the master file. Mike offered to print some brochures and take them to future radio events that he will attend in order to gain club publicity.

President Jim invited everyone to join the club member group that meets at the Cottage in Crystal Lake immediately after the club meeting for pizza and camaraderie.

There was no new business.

After a short break, Jack, W9MU presented a very informative program on VSWR. Using the computer application SIM Smith, Jack demonstrated how much loss is possible in various transmission lines under certain antenna mismatch conditions.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:50 p.m.

Respectfully Submitted,

Roger Scott, KF9D, MCWA Secretary

Subject: Meeting Minutes of Sept 1, 2015

The September meeting was called to order by President Kent, K9KMD, at 7:00 pm on September 1, 2015 in the Crystal Lake Bank meeting room.

The Pledge of Allegiance kicked off the meeting, led by Mike KC9Q.

Introductions around the room followed. Thirty-five people were in attendance for the meeting, including several visitors and some members not present for a long time.

Ray, N9RWC announced that the monthly VE test sessions will resume on Sept. 15 at the Free Methodist Church in Woodstock at 7:00 pm. Contact Steve KB9OLD if you are interested in taking a test at the session.

Minutes from the August meeting were published for review on the club website by Secretary Roger, KF9D. John, KC9TCX moved to accept the minutes as published, seconded by Joe, N9OK. The motion passed by voice vote.

Treasurer Dave, N9ITE reported a balance of $4736.25 in the treasury. Dave, NT9E made a motion to accept the treasurer’s report, seconded by Mike, KC9Q. The motion passed by voice vote. Dave also reported sending a donation to the PKD Foundation in the amount of $50 in memory of MCWA member Tom Schwar, WB9RFP, who recently passed away. A Thank You note was received from Tom’s widow, which was passed around for the membership to read.

The President, Vice-President, Webmaster, and Newsletter Editor had nothing new to report to the group.

President Kent, K9KMD, informed the group that it is time to elect new officers. An executive committee meeting will be held to identify a slate of officers, which will be presented at the October meeting. Kent also invited anyone interested in running for an office to come forward. Erik, WA9JE, indicated that he would be interested in running for an office, perhaps Vice-President.

No old business or new business was brought before the membership. No Public Service activities were raised for discussion.

W9DXCC will be held on September 12, 2015 at the Hyatt Woodfield. It is preceded on Sept. 11 by Contest-U and DX-U at the same location. Google W9DXCC for details.

Upcoming hamfests highlighted include Belvidere on Sept. 12 and Peoria on Sept. 19. John, KA9CAR, asked if anyone was interested in having a club flea market table at Belvidere.

Kent reported that October’s program will tentatively be presented by our ARRL Section Manager Tom Ciciora, KA9QPN.

The business meeting concluded at 7:30 pm.

After a short break, Ed Picha, N9EP gave a presentation on a Maine state-wide communications system installation project that he had led for Motorola. Ed had great pictures and stories to give an insider’s view on what goes on behind the scenes.

Respectfully Submitted,

Roger Scott, KF9D, MCWA Secretary

Subject: Meeting Minutes of Aug 4, 2015

The August meeting was called to order by President Kent, K9KMD, at 7:00 pm on August 4, 2015 in the Crystal Lake Bank meeting room.

The Pledge of Allegiance kicked off the meeting, led by Kent, K9KMD.

Introductions around the room followed. Twenty-seven people were in attendance for the meeting. George Hellmann announced he recently passed his technician class exam and is awaiting his new license and call sign.

Minutes from the July meeting were published for review on the club website by Secretary Roger, KF9D. Dave, NT9E moved to accept the minutes as published, seconded by Mike, KC9Q. The motion passed by voice vote.

Treasurer Dave, N9ITE was not present at the meeting, but a balance of $5028.19 in the treasury was published in the club newsletter. Jerry, N9AVY made a motion to accept the treasurer’s report, seconded by Mike, KC9Q. The motion passed by voice vote.

President Kent, K9KMD informed the group that one of our active members Tom Schwar, WB9RFP, became a silent key on July 21. He was a member of MCWA, the VARA repeater group, and a former member of EARS. John, K9JK, moved that in Tom’s memory, a donation in the amount of $50 be made to the PKD (Polycyctic Kidney Disease) Foundation. The motion was seconded by John, KC9TCX and passed by voice vote.

VP Dave, KA9OZP was not present at the meeting for a report.

Secretary Roger, KF9D, reported sending a sympathy card to Tom’s family. Additionally, Roger reported sending a thank you to Bob, N9NIX for allowing us to use a tower at field day.

Webmaster Dave, NT9E will be revamping the club website after the first of next year.

Jerry, N9AVY, newsletter editor, had nothing new to report.

Jack, W9MU, informed the group that the club is again scheduled to present a 5 week class at MCC on Introduction to Amateur Radio beginning in February.

The VE test sessions are taking a summer break, but will resume in September.

Under new business, John, N9DJ, shared the frustrations of being the first person to attempt to get a tower permit under the new Unified Development Ordinance of McHenry County. Additional requirements and costs are being asked of him, after the initial application was placed.

Several area hamfests, upcoming contest activities, and special events stations were highlighted. See QST for details.

W9DXCC will be held on September 12, 2015 at the Hyatt Woodfield. It is preceded on Sept. 11 by Contest-U and DX-U at the same location. Google W9DXCC for details.

Mike, KC9Q, brought a lot of information on some of the intrusive things that are reportedly present in Windows 10. Jim, N7US will add links to the information on the club reflector.

The business meeting concluded at 7:38 pm.

After a short break, Dave K9RUF gave a very complete and enthusiastic presentation on the D-Star digital radio protocol found in Icom products.

Respectfully Submitted,

Roger Scott, KF9D, MCWA Secretary

McHenry County Wireless Association Meeting Minutes

Subject: Meeting Minutes of July 7, 2015

The July meeting was called to order by President Kent, K9KMD, at 7:00 pm on July 7, 2015 in the Crystal Lake Bank meeting room.

The Pledge of Allegiance kicked off the meeting, led by Dave, N9ITE.
Introductions around the room followed.  Twenty-four people were in attendance for the meeting, including visitor Dan, KD9AHQ.

Minutes from the June meeting were published for review on the club website by Secretary Roger, KF9D.  Tom, KD6KHK moved to accept the minutes as published, seconded by Scott, KB9VRW. The motion passed by voice vote.

Treasurer Dave, N9ITE reported a balance of $5225.70 in the treasury before field day expenses. Dave, NT9E made a motion to accept the treasurer’s report, seconded by Jim, N7US. The motion passed by voice vote.

President Kent, K9KMD commented that he had previous commitments on Saturday of Field Day, but was back on Sunday to operate and help with tear-down.

VP Dave, KA9OZP expressed thanks to the FD chairman and all those who helped with set-up and tear-down.

Dave, NT9E announced plans to revamp the website over the coming months. Plan is to have new website in place by Jan 1, 2016.

Jerry, N9AVY, newsletter editor, was not present for a report.

Jack, W9MU, was not present to comment on future programs.

The VE test sessions are taking a summer break, but will resume in September.

Under new business, it was noted that Bob, N9NIX has loaned the club a tower for the past 2 years for field day use. It was suggested that the club secretary send Bob a note expressing the gratitude of the club. Additionally, a motion was made by KA9CAR and seconded by N9ITE to offer club membership for the year to Bob as a token of our appreciation.  The motion was approved by voice vote.

It was noted that following the field day activity, the club 2 element beam, mast, and A-frame tower support are located in John’s garage, KA9CAR.

Several area hamfests, upcoming contest activities, and special events stations were highlighted.  See QST for details.

W9DXCC will be held on September 12, 2015 at the Hyatt Woodfield. It is preceded on Sept. 11 by Contest-U and DX-U at the same location.

John, KA9CAR moved to adjourn the business meeting, seconded by John, K9JK. Following voice vote approval, the meeting was adjourned.

After a short break, Roger KF9D presented a wrap-up on the club field day activity, including photos and totals.

Jim, N7US gave the club an overview of a feature in the DX Lab software package called Spot Collector. This is a very valuable tool to see highlighted spots of just the stations needed to help meet your personalized award goals.

Respectfully Submitted,
Roger Scott, KF9D, MCWA Secretary

MCWA June 2015 Minutes

Subject: Meeting Minutes of June 2, 2015

The May meeting was called to order by President Kent, K9KMD, at 7:00 pm on June 2, 2015 in the Crystal Lake Bank meeting room.

The Pledge of Allegiance kicked off the meeting, led by Ray, N9RWC.

Introductions around the room followed. Thirty people were in attendance for the meeting.

It was announced that club member JP, KD9JPC had successfully upgraded to General Class.

Minutes from the May meeting were published for review on the club website by Secretary Roger, KF9D. Randy, KC9UTM moved to accept the minutes as published, seconded by Mike, KC9Q. The motion passed by voice vote.

Treasurer Dave, N9ITE reported a balance of $5095.70 in the treasury. John, K9JK, made a motion to accept the treasurer’s report, seconded by Cornel, KK9DX. The motion passed by voice vote.

Dave, KA9OZP had nothing new to report from the VP standpoint.

Dave, NT9E had nothing new to report on the website.

Jerry, N9AVY, newsletter editor, noted that 2 editions of the newsletter were published as the first edition was missing a page.

Jack, W9MU reported nothing planned yet for next month’s program. A suggestion was made to do a field day recap, including what went right and wrong.

A discussion among the membership concluded that we will hold a meeting in July, even though it has been skipped at times in the past.

Ray, N9RWC, gave an update on the May VE testing session. Three applicants successfully passed their exams. The next session will occur in September after taking the summer off.

A discussion ensued concerning the possibility of the club offering upgrade classes. The general consensus was that so much information is available on line that it might not be worthwhile.

Band activity was reported to be good at times, although several recent solar flares have caused temporary disruptions. The CW WPX contest the previous weekend attracted big activity on the bands.

Sporadic E season is upon us for improved VHF propagation. The June VHF contest in 2 weekends from now should show enhanced activity.

Upcoming public service communications events include the June 7^th Udder Century Ride and the June 14^th Woodstock Road Challenge. Contact Wendell, N9REP via n9rep@arrl.net for further information.

Several area hamfests, upcoming contest activities, and special events stations were highlighted. See QST for details.

Following the adjournment of the business meeting Jack, W9MU gave a presentation on what to expect when operating during the upcoming Field Day event. This was followed by Roger, KF9D giving an introduction and demonstration on the N1MM+ logger program which will be used.

Respectfully Submitted,

Roger Scott, KF9D, MCWA Secretary