Why Amateur Radio?
When I was a kid, I got a walkie-talkie set for Christmas. I found I could talk with my best friend across the street! We used to get into a lot of trouble with those things...never mind the specifics...let your mind wander. :-) Ever since then, I have always been interested in radios.
My aunt and uncle got involved with the local volunteer ambulance service and after I got a bit older several of my friends did as well. Also, I had friends involved with the local volunteer fire department. I knew I wanted to volunteer somewhere to help out the community but I wasn't really interested in either of those areas. I didn't know anything about Amateur Radio at the time. Sometime while all this was going on, I met Randy, K1WWI, at the hardware store where I worked. He gave me my first Morse Code tape so I could learn...after that, I met another guy named Ted, AA1GX, who got me to a club meeting and told me about Amateur Radio. At around the same time, I met Larry, K1HEJ, who challenged me to get my license and I bought my first radio, a Radio Shack HTX-202. I started listening to the local repeaters and there were many different subjects, including computers (my professional field) and public service and emergency service discussions (what I was interested in doing)... Now this was getting interesting! Imagine, being able to use radios to help other people in emergency situations, just like the Emergency Medical Technician or a Fireman! I was hooked but I needed to know more. How could I help? What did Hams do? Looking into this more deeply, I found out that Hams will help with communication at public events such as road races, scouting events, etc. This was okay, however I wanted to be of real assistance in a time of need. By now, I was a Ham with my Technician license. I happened to be listening on my favorite local repeater when I heard the call for help. Apparently an elderly man was missing in Bristol and had been for some time. He had Alzheimer's disease and probably couldn't remember where he lived. In addition, he was a diabetic and needed his medication. THIS was what I was looking for...I wanted to help, so I headed up toward Bristol. What they did was a grid square search for this man, in conjunction with the local law enforcement, and the Net Control Operator (NCO) was in contact with the local police and the family, keeping everyone on the same page. Fortunately, the man was found safe and sound about 6 blocks from where he lived...while I wasn't able to help this time, I knew that I would be there if needed in the future.
My heartfelt thanks goes out to K1HEJ, K1WWI and AA1GX for giving me the kick needed to get me started... I also sincerely hope that this is the kick needed to get the folks reading this message started in ham radio too...
Wouldn't you like to help too? Care to join us? We would love to have you! That's one of the many wonderful things about ham radio...the people are VERY nice...
73 (means "Best Wishes")
Rick (N1WGK)