RI ARES Year #1 Strategic Goals underway October 2023 – October 2024

Annual Report by Nancy Austin, KC1NEK and Jeremy Taylor, K1JST    (November 4, 2024)

Summary: RI ARES Year #1 Strategic Goals underway, 2023-2024

1. new Situational Awareness mission 

   • FEMA Community Lifelines
   • NOAA National Weather Service – Skywarn 
   • RI stakeholder Outreach
   • Regional ARRL Collaboration 
     • ARRL neighbor Sections WMA, EMA Simulated Emergency Tests
     • NTS 2.0 – The National Traffic System 
   • Amateur Radio’s role in a (P.A.C.E.) communication plan  – Primary, alternate, contingency and emergency  
     • Monthly all-state RI ARES Simplex capability training/mapping net; Twice monthly RI ARES repeater nets w Net Control opportunities; digital nets.
     • Winlink – FEMA Region 1 monthly tests 
       • Initiated January 2024 to exercise the Regional PACE plan. Winlink is part of the “Emergency” category of the plan. 
       • Amateur radio is included in FEMA’s National Incident Management System (NIMS) and is a key part of FEMA’s emergency preparedness plans.
   • Interoperability exercises with Region 1 Army MARS (ex: airport weather exercises, October, November 2023) – “The Federal Government (DOD) considers Amateur Radio operators to be a valuable communications resource for Homeland Security and Disaster Relief missions. The DOD has designated MARS as the method of interoperability with the Amateur Radio Service.”
     • 60m antenna kit-build held at the New England Wireless & Steam Museum “Steam-Up”, October 2024.

2. new Reporting Capabilities & 1st year Data Metrics to ARRL HQ (10/1/2023 – 9/30/2024)

$50,000 volunteer hour value from RI Section

 

1. new Communication as Critical Infrastructure mission – ARES amateurs can help reduce national systemic risk 

National Security Memorandum (NSM) on Critical Infrastructure Security and Resilience

April 30, 2024 – NSM reaffirms Communications is one of 16 critical infrastructure sectors

see also Nov 2023 Rand Report, Identifying and Prioritizing Systemically Important Entities, Table 2.1 (The 55 National Critical Functions)

• support Connect function – technical, auxiliary comms 

• support Manage function – educate & train; support community

Why Reporting Matters 

Join the upcoming first Wednesday monthly RI ARES Zoom call on November 6, 2024 8-9:45pm to learn more about reporting. Join this discussion and help prioritize strategic outcomes for the upcoming year. 

Want to learn more about RI ARES and how you can contribute? Express your interest here:

https://riares.org/membership

RI SEC – Open Letter to All Amateur Radio Operators, Clubs, Groups and Associations in the Rhode Island Section (March 4, 2024)

RI ARES Reporting: 10/1/2023 – 9/30/2024

When reporting to the ARRL; Net Hours, Exercises and Trainings are combined into the Exercises and Trainings category unless the net was in service to one of the other categories.

Members	135
Nets Held	213
Nets w/ NTS	78
Net Participants	1565
Net Hours	1190.95
Exercises	23
Exercise Hrs	135.5
Training events	13
Training Hrs	360.75
Public Service Events	4
Public Svc Hrs	117
Community Service Events	9
Community Hrs	345.75
Emergency Events	0
Emergency Hrs	0
Skywarn Events	23
Skywarn Hrs	153.75
Meetings	18
Meeting Hrs	211
Unclassified Events	16
Unclassified Hrs	193
Total Hours per ARRL HQ	1516.748
Total Value	$50,795.89

Thank you to Jeremy Taylor, K1JST for stepping up one year ago (October 25, 2023) to volunteer as the RI Section Emergency Coordinator. Working hard behind the scenes, one of Jeremy’s many deliverables for the year is the data collected and reported as requested to ARRL HQ ARES. FYI, the value of a radio amateur volunteer hour is calculated at $33.49/hr.

The RI Section is proud to be supporting this data-driven approach for our data-driven time. Let’s work together in Year #2 to more accurately show how much we are already doing.

ARRL & FCC Backstory – Radio’s Road to Now: 1914-2024 

The ARRL is our non-profit, member-supported National association for Amateur Radio in the United States. It was founded 110 years ago in 1914 by American inventor Hiram Percy Maxim as The American Radio Relay League. 

Today, the ARRL remains the primary advocacy group for amateur radio operators. Its five pillars are Public Service, Advocacy, Education, Technology, and Membership. Standard membership dues are $59 per year, with free student membership and youth options. As of October 2024 there are about 750,000 licensed individual radio amateurs in the United States and under 2000 FCC licensed amateur radio operators in Rhode Island. 

Only a fraction of FCC-licensed radio operators in the USA belong to ARRL, our non-profit National association for Amateur Radio. These support and engagement numbers matter as we advocate to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for amateur radio’s continued right to historical bands and exclusive frequency privileges. Every ham is a stakeholder in this increasingly complex, competitive, data-driven, sensor-immersive world we find ourselves in. The next decade offers unique challenges and opportunities to craft a new legacy and have impact.

To remain relevant in this changing context, hams have important work to do vigilantly explaining the demonstrated outcomes and civic benefits amateur radio operators bring to the table now. 

This is not one-and-done storytelling. 

Where does spectrum regulation come from? How does Amateur Radio and ARES fit in?

International regulation of radio frequency allocation is governed by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) founded in Paris in 1865, while telecommunication regulations in the United States are regulated by two entities: the NTIA and the FCC. 

The FCC was established in June 1934 under the Communications Act of 1934. When Congress established the FCC it was for purposes of National Defense. So, the FCC “has always had a national security mandate associated with the work that it does.” [Interview: “How the FCC is Tackling National Security with Enforcement Bureau Chief Loyaan Egal” (October 9, 2024)]

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulates the Amateur Radio service in a rapidly-changing spectrum environment where commercial and non-commercial interests compete for spectrum rights worth billions. 

We are only one tiny tiny part of the FCC’s expansive mission that extends from undersea submarine cables to satellites, and everything in between. 

The FCC is organized into eight Bureaus, and the roughly 750,000 individual licensed hams administered by the FCC’s Amateur Radio Service can be found under The Wireless Telecommunications Bureau (WTB). This WTB Bureau is further organized into Divisions, and within this WTB Division, the Amateur Radio Service is again competing for attention to its priorities with numerous other spectrums and services overseen by the Mobility Division. 

There is, of course, merit and opportunities for Amateur Radio service collaboration with other Mobility Division Services, including for example: GMRS, FRS, CB, and/or the Maritime Mobile Services. 

• The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) – established 1934 https://www.fcc.gov/about-fcc/what-we-do
• Wireless Telecommunications Bureau: https://www.fcc.gov/wireless-telecommunications
• Mobility Division: https://www.fcc.gov/wireless/mobility-division-wtb
• Amateur Radio Service https://www.fcc.gov/wireless/bureau-divisions/mobility-division/amateur-radio-service

The FCC Mobility Division sees its mission as:

“responsible for a cutting-edge portfolio of rulemakings that facilitate rapid, widespread deployment of wireless communications services, promote competition, and set the stage for the next generation of wireless communications in the United States.  The Mobility Division also oversees wireless spectrum licenses used to provide vital connectivity solutions to the American people on land, aboard vessels, and in the air.”

This is the ecosystem the non-profit ARRL is navigating. On behalf of all Rhode Island’s c.2000 radio amateurs, whether an individual ham joins ARRL or not. 

Revitalizing a viable, relevant RI ARES program needs to be part of a success plan, but it won’t happen overnight. Your new RI Section leadership team has been in place less than a year and a half, and is working hard to pilot strategic objectives and test the capacity to succeed with sustainable respected partnerships. 

Before we move on, let’s review how the ARRL Field Organization works: The membership in each of the 71 ARRL geographic sections elects a Section Manager once every two years. The Section Manager is responsible for managing the ARRL Field Organization programs in their section and serves as a liaison between the volunteers in their section, regional division, and paid ARRL staff at the national headquarters. 

The current and new RI Section Manager is Nancy Austin, KC1NEK who was elected for a term beginning July 1, 2023. The previous RI Section Manager was Bob Beaudet, W1YRC who served in that role for over twenty years (2002-2023). 

Through coordinators, each Section Manager (SM) recruits other volunteers to staff various crucial program areas. One of these program areas is Public Service and Emergency Communications, where the Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC) serves as the assistant to the Section Manager for emergency preparedness. The SEC is appointed by the SM to administer matters pertaining to public safety, emergency communications and the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (ARES®) on a Section-wide basis. The current and new RI Section Emergency Coordinator in charge of ARES is Jeremy Taylor K1JST (appointed October 25, 2023). Since June 28, 2024 K1JST is also standing by as Assistant Section Manager.

Please send special thanks to these volunteer ARRL RI Section Field Officers – all busy working  technical professionals by day. Their “boots on the ground” expertise and the wide respect in which they are held by their professional peers has been instrumental in helping RI ARES quickly set relevant strategic goals – as we begin to move the whole RI Section forward.

• RI Assistant Section Manager, Mike Corey KI1U (appointed July 1, 2023)
• RI Technical Coordinator, Dave Neal W2DAN (appointed July 1, 2023)
• RI Section Emergency Coordinator, Jeremy Taylor K1JST (appointed October 25, 2023)

What is RI ARES®? 

ARES® is part of ARRL, with a focus on Public Service and Emergency Communications. 

The ARRL’s organizing concept is that: 

ARES® “consists of licensed amateurs who have voluntarily registered their qualifications and equipment with their local ARES leadership for communications duty in the public service when disaster strikes.”  

In practice, each of the 71 ARRL Sections implement ARES differently, based on membership, geography, history, and other factors. Local or regional communities evolve an ARES structure responsive to their Section’s situation and/or talent and time capacity. And this may change over time, depending on many factors – including age. Add in the new post-pandemic expectation of well-run hybrid or fully remote ways to connect and contribute. Respectful that everyone is a volunteer with many demands on their attention. 

For example, Massachusetts is administered as two ARRL Sections – East and West (EMA and WMA), each with large Counties miles apart. As we all know, Rhode Island is the smallest state. It has five counties – yet these geographical boundaries may or may not align with the strong local bonds Rhode Islander’s identify in their own mental “map” of their own “lived” Rhode Island. Each with unique situational awareness to share. 

As we start again, almost from scratch, consider RI ARES now as the group of radio amateurs who have expressed interest in providing their volunteer service to the ARRL Rhode Island Section. RI ARES is not a club, and is not an organization in and of itself; it is part of the RI section ARRL field organization. Collectively, ARES®  is led by a paid team at national ARRL Headquarters in Newington, Connecticut and is a resource that can absolutely be a key mobilizing resources during emergencies. 

About RI ARES, Repeaters, and Amateur Radio as Critical Infrastructure

Amateur radio offers auxiliary critical communications infrastructure that can help communities respond to emergencies and disasters. 

Amateur radio provides a backup to centralized communication systems like cell phones, internet, and landlines. This redundancy allows emergency management teams to continue to coordinate responses and request assistance.   

FCC-licensed radio amateurs can operate independently of centralized infrastructure. An amateur radio station can be set up quickly by raising a wire antenna and connecting it to a radio and power source.  Amateur radio operators, also known as “hams”, can communicate with non-amateur entities like FEMA, the National Weather Service, and the military. 

Amateur radio operators have volunteered their time, equipment, and skills to their home communities for over 100 years. Amateur Radio operators are recognized as part of the Incident Command System under the ICT Support Branch Communications Unit as Trained Auxiliary Communicators (AUXC), which are a valuable communications resource tool that can be used by local, county, regional, tribal or state agencies/organizations. 

Amateur Radio Infrastructure (repeaters and networks) often have the advantage of being easily accessible for repair, and have local, experienced owners, operators and technicians with a deep understanding of both how they work and how to make them work in ways other than as originally designed, which adds flexibility to deal with any challenges that a certain situation or event presents, and have many amateurs that use them on a daily basis which helps verify operation, build knowledge of their utilization, and develop a sense of their coverage area. Amateur Radio networks are often utilized as Contingency and/or Emergency backups in Communications PACE plans.

See also:

https://www.cisa.gov/safecom/comu-training-resources

https://www.fema.gov/sites/default/files/documents/fema_ict-functional-guidance.pdf

What are PACE Plans?

Maintaining operability, interoperability, and continuity of emergency communications is critical for emergency response regardless of the operating conditions. Primary, Alternate, Contingency, Emergency (PACE) communications plans are a tool for helping organizations prepare for backup communications capabilities in out-of-the-ordinary situations. PACE planning helps organizations establish options for redundant communications capabilities if primary capabilities are disrupted or degraded. It is critical for communications to continue despite disrupted communication networks. Perfect situational awareness is not always possible, and communications may be impacted by environmental factors affecting infrastructure, equipment, and users. The PACE concept takes redundancy beyond the typical planning of having a primary means and a backup. A PACE plan is triggered when the primary capability becomes unavailable.

A PACE plan helps organizations establish predictable and redundant communications capabilities in changing operational environments. Having redundant communications methods in place and sharing these among users helps achieve interoperability and continuity throughout the emergency communications ecosystem, particularly in challenging environments. PACE plans can also be utilized to address capacity issues by offloading some types of communication to the redundant solution, leaving the Primary available for higher priority use.

NB1RI

https://nb1ri.net

NB1RI is a privately held repeater network, originally built by Stephen Hodell (KA1RCI/SK) and now owned by his widow, Sandy Hodell KA1RXB. It is currently operated and maintained by the Narragansett Bay Amateur Radio Club (NB1RI), with Trustee Adam Paul KC1KCC and System Control Operator Jeremy Taylor K1JST providing day to day operation and maintenance. NB1RI is an open Amateur Radio repeater network, and has always been made available to RI ARES and other groups wishing to provide auxiliary communications to served agencies as a resource at their disposal.

NB1RI is funded by a 501(c)3 public charity, the RI Amateur Radio Emergency Communications Foundation or RI AREC Foundation. The RI AREC Foundation was founded by members of the RI ARES leadership team in 2020. RI AREC is an entirely separate organization from both NB1RI and RI ARES (the ARRL insisted we not use their registered mark ARES and that we ensure it is an entirely separate organization for tax, management, oversight, and controls purposes). The RI AREC Foundation’s primary mission is funding the establishment and maintenance of Amateur Radio networks that provide electronic communications in the event of disasters or other emergencies, fostering education in the field of electronic communications and public service, and the support of incident response agencies and charitable organizations requiring auxiliary, situational awareness, public service, health and welfare and emergency communications and technical services. This support is provided with the understanding that any networks that receive funding must be made available for use by RI ARES in order to align with the mission of the organization. RI AREC allows the donation of restricted funds earmarked for support for the NB1RI repeater network, and also uses general funds in support of NB1RI, RI ARES training programs, and hosting the RI ARES and RI Swap and Sell websites. The Managing Director of the RI AREC Foundation is Jeremy Taylor K1JST.

RECCWG/COMM-ISAC

FEMA supports the Regional Emergency Communications Coordination Working Groups in all 10 FEMA regions to address key emergency communications issues. RECCWGs are congressionally mandated planning and coordination bodies located in each FEMA Region that provide a collaborative forum to assess and address the survivability, sustainability, operability, and interoperability of emergency communications systems at all levels of government. RECCWG membership includes emergency response organizations from federal, state, tribal, and local governments, nongovernmental organizations, and private sector entities. FEMA is very selective about membership in the RECCWGs, and only allows individuals in certain positions at ESF #2 support NGOs like the ARRL to be members. As the RI SEC, Jeremy Taylor, K1JST provides representation for Amateur Radio for the Rhode Island section to the FEMA Region 1 RECCWG and the FEMA Region 1 RECCWG Amateur Radio Subcommittee. The RECCWG is based out of the FEMA Regional Response Coordination Center in Maynard, MA. Other RI Representatives on the RECCWG include the RI EMA Director and Deputy Director. 

Because of his RECCWG membership, Jeremy has been able to join the CISA National Coordinating Center Communications Information Sharing and Analysis Centers as a Government Representative. This gains him access to the weekly CISA Central Emergency Response Operations NCC/COMM-ISAC Meetings, as well as daily CISA/FEMA Communications Situation Reports, News Clips, Cybersecurity Advisories for COMM sector and industrial controls, and access to Emergency Response Communications Coordination Calls. 

Through his day job, Jeremy is also a member of the Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center (MS-ISAC), which is focused on the cybersecurity posture of U.S. State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial (SLTT) government organizations, and the K12 Security Information eXchange (K12SIX) which does the same for K12 school districts. 

Reposting for your review:

RI ARES SET & Situational Awareness (October 2023) 

https://ri-arrl.org/welcome-to-your-october-2023-ri-section-newsletter  

The National Incident Management System (NIMS) framework includes three major components relevant to amateur radio:

• Resource Management
• Command and Coordination > Incident Command System (ICS)
• Communications and Information Management 
  • Situational Awareness – maintained through the flow of information

Hams are getting new attention for their skilled ability to accurately report real time, ground truth situational awareness information when other forms of communication may not be available. 

Partnering with the community to provide additional situational awareness underpins the National Weather System’s Skywarn program. It is central to FEMA’s new Community Lifelines. On October 19, 2023 at 10:19am, over 57 million people worldwide participated in the Great Earthquake Shakeout Drill; and this year’s drill included new ways for hams to contribute via Winlink in this global situational awareness exercise.

This August, Tom Kinehan, the US Army Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS) Region One Director, reached out to New England ARRL Section leaders to see if any Section might be interested in working together with MARS on an Airport Weather situational awareness SET, or Simulated Emergency Test, scheduled for October. MARS recognizes that experienced, motivated radio amateurs could be a “force multiplier” passing structured traffic. Let’s see what’s possible in post-pandemic 2023. 

Under Jeremy Taylor’s leadership as then Assistant Section Emergency Coordinator, RI ARES stepped up to the challenge. Within days of discussing this with the new and pre-occupied Section Manager and getting the green light, K1JST had completed the necessary administrative documentation and met with key stakeholders. Early communication was sent out here:

https://ri-arrl.org/join-the-ri-ares-mars-airport-weather-exercise-starting-this-weekend/

Jeremy K1JST then planned and led the RI ARES team and anyone interested in a practice exercise over the weekend of October 7-8, 2023. He followed up promptly to implement changes based on some of the challenges reported. Some lessons learned were posted here:

https://ri-arrl.org/rx-on-the-aviation-band/

Two weeks later, the actual SET took place over the weekend of October 21-22, 2023. 

An interim report was posted here:

https://ri-arrl.org/ri-ares-mars-set-underway/

The final SET net closed Sunday at 10pm. The first October 2023 RI-ARES & MARS SET was a resounding success.

• 50 net check-ins 
• 35 reports for 8 unique airports 
• 2 airports out of state in CT and Worcester, supporting regional situational awareness
• Team building success
  • Among RI hams across the state.
  • New and old connections fostered
  • RI ARES – MARS relationships renewed or begun. Many thanks to Tom Kinehan N1CPE, Matt Hackman KB1FUP and John E. Miller N1UMJ.
  • Opportunity to assess RI ARES’ baseline capabilities as of October 2023 to provide situational awareness to a served agency – and how to set a path forward.
• Outreach and communication will take time. RI ARES is a statewide organization where hams can connect on the mission, get a certain kind of training, and bring this all back to help support their local community. 
• Counties are not an ideal organizational unit for RI ARES. 
  • The final SET participation by RI County looks like this (not counting MARS members):
    • Kent County: 39%
    • Newport County: 28%
    • Providence County: 17%
    • Washington County: 17%
    • Bristol County: 0%
• Jeremy Taylor, K1JST – our new RI SEC – has proposed other RI ARES organizational structures, and welcomes your suggestions. 
  • How can we come together to support a state-wide, relevant RI ARES training program that will deliver value to our communities in 2023, no matter where in RI we live? No matter how many different radio clubs or radio interests we also care about?
  • What would you prioritize? 
  • Please join the conversation. Step up and get involved. Take action and help us all succeed. 

Rhode Island’s amateur radio community makes a difference. And we can do more.

From FEMA IS-0700.b – An Introduction to the National Incident Management System (NIMS). Nationwide, ARES members are introduced to situational awareness, ICS and other fundamentals in the course sequence: FEMA IS-100, 200, 700, 800. These courses are available for free, on-line, on-demand. See, for example:  IS-700.B: An Introduction to the National Incident Management System

 

Ham Competencies & Platform Capabilities (August 2023)

Welcome to your August 2023 RI Section Newsletter  

Thank you for letting me share some of my thoughts from HamXpo, along with other things that stand out for me after two months as your new RI Section Manager.

Ham Competencies & Platform Capabilities

There have never been more ways to “reach out and talk to the world“. In such a changed world, what does amateur radio bring to the table? 

One of my surprise takeaways from last weekend’s HamExpo 2023 was how often speakers highlighted radio’s platform capabilities and the keenly-relevant competencies skilled amateur radio operators deliver. 

This shift toward emphasizing ham radio’s unique and relevant “platform capability” was called out in the ARRL President’s Keynote address. Ham competencies provided context for the DX/Contest dinner speaker, Don Greenbaum, N1DG and his riveting talk on DXpeditioning with a “Rig in a Box” given contemporary constraints (including cost, environmental concerns, permission timelines) and new opportunities (including Starlink satellites and drones). https://www.dx-world.net/vp6a-ducie-island/

Rob Macedo, KD1CY from our nearby regional National Weather Service (NWS) station emphasized: 

What distinguishes a licensed amateur radio operator is their proven discipline in structured voice and digital communications, technical skills, and awareness of the importance of maintained infrastructure. 

Hams can “augment the situational awareness mission when communications don’t fail”, using their capabilities and skills to accurately operate and report as part of a team. 

During Macedo’s talk on how hams can contribute on the Hurricane Net, KD1CY stated: “Amateur radio operators provide the discipline in structuring both voice and data communications in an organized format…” Ham competencies and the platform capabilities of amateur radio are more relevant than ever. (He spoke as Hurricane Idalia gathered force, and Ocean State hams pondered our own community preparedness during another hurricane season.  (Screenshot below from one of Rob Macedo’s many presentations at the 2023 HamXpo.)

Like a rainy day bank account, now is the time for skill development and the professional relationship building of mutual trust and practiced respectful collaboration.

This shift also aligns with FEMA’s new Community Lifelines approach. https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/practitioners/lifelines

It provides context for the upcoming regional MARS exercise where hams will be asked to see if they can hear the weather reports at local airports and accurately transmit that to another station. This only requires the basic radio operator skills that any licensed radio amateur can practice daily by joining nets and contesting – from entry-level POTA on up to EME. 

Communicating why these seemingly basic skills matter is important. Strengthening these skills is only one part of an overall ham competency portfolio however. Collaborative teamwork and professionalism matter too, more than ever. 

The amateur radio community is a cross generational, growth mindset, force-multiplier that excels in mentoring technical capabilities via experiential learning. All of this aligns to the FCC’s mission statement for Amateur Radio. HamXpo presenters went back to basics referencing Part 97, and I read it again in a new light:

Title 47, Subpart A—General Provisions  https://www.arrl.org/part-97-text

• 97.1   Basis and purpose.

The rules and regulations in this part are designed to provide an amateur radio service having a fundamental purpose as expressed in the following principles:

(a) Recognition and enhancement of the value of the amateur service to the public as a voluntary noncommercial communication service, particularly with respect to providing emergency communications.

(b) Continuation and extension of the amateur’s proven ability to contribute to the advancement of the radio art.

(c) Encouragement and improvement of the amateur service through rules which provide for advancing skills in both the communication and technical phases of the art.

(d) Expansion of the existing reservoir within the amateur radio service of trained operators, technicians, and electronics experts.

(e) Continuation and extension of the amateur’s unique ability to enhance international goodwill. 

RI Section priorities 

About 45% of RI’s licensed radio amateurs hold a Technician license. Nationally the figure apparently is 51%. As many as 75% of new Technicians never become active hams in that critical first year. Why is that? What can we in RI do better? 

Over the last six months, RI welcomed about 28 new Technician licensees and 22 license class upgrades. Other hams became Silent Keys, moved or otherwise changed their QTH. Many hams joined or renewed their ARRL membership; a far fewer number let their membership lapse – and this group includes Silent Keys. I’m still trying to sift through the available data on RI to find that most helpful kernel and how it might influence RI Section conversations on priorities. The average age of a ham is 75, and the dynamic of the seesaw is something to be mindful of. 

IMO it’s good news that a situational awareness public service mission is well suited for older hams who have deep experience and can provide tremendous value reliably operating from their home stations. But there is still a lot to learn about what opportunities and challenges are coming down the way. Regardless, it’s never too soon to build positive relationships across our small state on sunny days like today. 

Tonight on the nightly W1SYE 2m repeater net, one of these new Technicians tried to check in, but hadn’t yet solved everything about programming his new handheld. One of us reached out to let him know he was heard, if weak-readable. Within 15 minutes, five hams who belong to multiple clubs stepped up to help this new ham making his first QSOs feel heard, and to offer mentoring follow-up. It was heartening to see this kind of welcoming collaboration across the state. I had already drafted this newsletter before this happened tonight. It reminded me again that troubleshooting technology may be part of the skills package, but gathering people who care enough to selflessly step up, work together, and follow up to help someone else succeed is a leadership competency that really matters. 

 

RI-ARES and K1OS Ocean State Amateur Radio Club support Coventry Health & Safety Fair (September 2024)

More than two decades after the deadly West Warwick The Station Nightclub fire, Tom Senarchia KA1VAY (above left) remains mission-driven to promote public health & safety awareness with inclusive whole community outreach. … Tom KA1VAY is the Founding President of RI AEM (the state-wide Association of Emergency Managers). Building on his career as a West Warwick Emergency Management professional, he is now also a Pastor. This September, he opened the doors of the Cornerstone of Faith UMC in Coventry for a long-planned Health & Safety Fair that welcomed the community. It was a blue sky New England late summer day, and people from across RI steadily dropped by to chat with representatives from the United Way’s 211 program and the RI Dept of Health’s Special Needs Emergency Registry, and more. There was food and fun and a chance to discover just how many older women at this event had fond memories of their now-Silent Key dad’s active on Amateur Radio.  … A shared theme was this: radio amateurs (old and young) can support  FEMA’s Lifelines and Situational Awareness mission. …. In-person community outreach and collaboration like this Health & Safety Fair are more meaningful than ever in 2024.    … For more information on how to get involved with Amateur Radio and RI-ARES, see RIARES.org  and RI-ARRL.org and https://www.arrl.org/new-ham-resources

Why Reporting Matters  (Nov 4, 2024)

Join our upcoming first Wednesday monthly RI ARES Zoom call on November 6, 2024 from 8-9:45pm to learn more about reporting. Join the discussion and help prioritize strategic outcomes for the upcoming year. 

Want to learn more about RI ARES and how you can contribute? Express your interest here:

https://riares.org/membership

 

RI ARES Year #1 Strategic Goals underway October 2023 – October 2024

Annual Report by Nancy Austin, KC1NEK and Jeremy Taylor, K1JST  (November 4, 2024)

https://ri-arrl.org/riares_Year#1_2023-2024