News from the Sterling Park Amateur Radio Club (SPARC)

 Hi,

It is time for our second in-person meeting of the year.  This one is on 31 January 2024.  NOT 7 February.

We do not have anyone lined up for refreshments.  If you want to volunteer, please email back.

Our presentation this month will be from Doug McNulty, KM4GC.  He will talk about "Ham Shack Grounding and Bonding."  I suspect only a few of us do much in the way of ground other than plugging in the electrical cord.  Maybe this will encourage us to do more. 

We will also get caught up on the status of the upcoming Virginia QSO Party and the license class and exam session planned for 24-25 February.

Looking forward to seeing you all there.

73, Gordon, NQ4K

posted by SPARC'ie  # 10:44 AM

 Hi,

We had eight attendees.  All on Zoom.  We cut off the 2M repeater connection after 15 minutes because there were checkins on 2M repeater.

Very good conversation.  A major theme was getting someone to give a presentation Linux to the group.

Jokes.

 How do you tell the difference between a bull and a cow?
It is either one of the utter.

A person was hit by a soda can. 
It did not hurt because it was a soft drink.

What is a snowman's favorite Mexican dish?
A brrrrrrrrr-rito.

73, Gordon, NQ4K

posted by SPARC'ie  # 9:17 AM

 Hi,

The weather was good and the turnout was good.  17 attendees.  No one on Zoom. 

The Show and Tell session was interesting.  I had a 1975 vintage SWR/Field Strength meter.  A couple of new hams had homemade 2M grand plane verticals. All very interesting.

The gift exchange was exciting.  A few good gifts.  A few not  so good gifts. Someone left behind their gift of a soldering iron and multi-meter.  If that is you, please email and I will set it aside for you.

73, Gordon, NQ4K

posted by SPARC'ie  # 9:35 AM

 Hi,

It is time for our first meeting of the new year.  Wednesday, 3 January 2024, starting at 7 PM at the Sheriff station in Sterling.

Refreshments will be provided by Adrienne, K3MAF.  She had provided refreshments for the January meeting for a long time.  She bakes a variety of treats, all of which I like too much. 

This will be a full meeting.

We will start with introductions.

Then we will have a Show and Tell.  Please bring in something to show the members and talk about.  A doogle for your cellphone.  An old radio.  A new radio. A certificate of achievement.  Preferably related to ham radio, but can be anything.

This will be followed by a White Elephant Exchange.  Please bring a "gift" wrapped in a bag or paper. All get a number and get to choose a wrapped gift in sequence.  I know we all have things we cannot bear to do without, but need to get rid of.  HA HA

Concurrently will all of the above, we have our annual dues collect for 2024.  $10 per year. 

We will take a Group Photo.

In addition,

We can review the status of the Virginia QSO Party and the upcoming Tech Class and Exam (on 24-25 Feb).

That will be it for the meeting.  Looking forward to seeing you all again.

posted by SPARC'ie  # 10:14 AM