Celebrating 25 Years of Service in 2002
OMARC was founded in 1977, thus we recently celebrated our 25th anniversary. We are
a responsive and responsible organization with dedicated club officers and members
which share a common interest in Amateur Radio and the community in which we live.
In addition, OMARC is proud to have been an ARRL
affilated club since July of 1979, in 2004 we shall celebrate our 25th year as an
ARRL Affiliated Club
OMARC is also an ARRL Special Services club as well. We conduct a well developed
and effective program of public service oriented programs providing communications for
various events, we provide training courses, VE testing sessions and ongoing assistance
targeted to prospective and newly licensed hams in our community.
Commencing again in September we shall resume our FREE Amateur Radio licensing classes
at the historic Diana site of the old Camp Evans Fort Monmouth reservation that is now part of the InfoAge Learning Center. We also
hold VE sessions at the site every other month on a Saturday morning, see our calendar of events below.
We now have the club membership application form on the website. You may print it out (or request
one via an S.A.S.E. to the club address) and mail to the club address to the attention of the Treasurer
or better yet, bring it to the next monthly meeting on the 2nd Saturday of each month.
For the HTML membership application click here.
For the .PDF membership application click here.
All OMARC members can request an e-mail address @omarc.org and a speed dial number on the club repeater for autopatch.
Monthly OMARC Business Meetings OMARC General Membership meetings are now being held
each 2nd Saturday of the month, now at 9:00 A.M. Meetings are held at the Bedrock Cafe,
10 Main Street, Bradley Beach, New Jersey. Come on out and meet the members and have a great time !
Click here for maps to the meeting location.
Everyone is welcome and encouraged to attend.
Select from the menu "Latest Club Happenings" for a low down and photos
on recent meetings and events.
OMARC invites all Radio Amateurs and their friends to visit the Diana site
which is where we hold Army MARS operations, Technician classes, VE Testing,
OMARCBoard Meetings/Open House Night and other events such as International
Marconi Day (IMD) and ARRL contests from.
We also try to have the site open between 10:00am-2:00pm each week on
either Saturday or Sunday as a key holder is available, see the calendar of
events below.
The Diana site is located on Marconi Road, Building #9116 InfoAge Learning
Center, Wall, NJ 07719. For directions to the Diana site click here
Talk-in can be had on the club repeater, 145.110 -600Khz PL 127.3hz (3A)
The Ocean-Monmouth Amateur Radio Club (OMARC) held an open house at the InfoAge Project Diana site
for Amateur Radio Awareness Day on Saturday September 18, 2004 we newspaper coverage by the Asbury
Park Press and the CoStar, click on the images below to read in full size.
Amateur Radio Awareness Day recognized the nation's 675,000 plus Amateur Radio (or "ham radio") operators
who make significant contributions to technology and education, and exemplify the spirit of volunteerism.
Awareness Day is sponsored by the American Radio Relay League (ARRL)--the national association for Amateur Radio.
"Some people think ham radio is obsolete, but that couldn't be farther from the truth," in Monmouth county alone, thousands of Radio Amateurs are active daily communicating around the world via short wave radio and now linked VHF repeater systems. Radio Amateurs are experimenting with the latest in digital communications and serving our communities in times of emergency. We're helping school children talk to astronauts on the International Space Station. I'm proud to be a ham radio operator.
Radio Amateur volunteers provide or supplement communication during disasters, which is one of the most important facets of the Amateur Radio Service. They often lend their communications expertise during tornadoes, wildfires, hurricanes and other emergencies. Amateur Radio operators often work in conjunction with local emergency management officials and relief organizations such as the American Red Cross and The Salvation Army.
The OMARC Special Events committee in conjunction with the OMARC Board of Directors and
the InfoAge Learning Center have decided to add to our list of activities the "Project Diana
Special Event" to commemorate the achievement made on 10 January 1946 in the first ever
successful Moon Bounce of radio signals.
This event will be widely publicized in the local press as well as the Amateur community. It is
anticipated that due to the historic nature of this event, we will likely have a large draw of the
non-Amateur public to the site during this event as well as news media.
On 10 January 2004 from 1400Z to 11 January 0000Z the Ocean Monmouth ARC will operate
from the historic Diana site to commemorate the first ever successful moon bounce experiment
as conducted by the US Army Signal Corps held on 10 January 1946.
OMARC shall operate CW/SSB and possibly other modes in the General and Novice/Technician
sub bands of the 80, 40, 20, 15, 10 meter bands and possibly elsewhere.
For a historical perspective refer to the ARRL QST article in the May of 1946 QST titled "A DX
Record: To the Moon and Back, How the Moon-Radar Feat was Accomplished" written by Herbert
Kaufpman, W20QU
For more information on the Diana Project and for QSL info please visit:
http://www.infoage.org/diana.html
The Ocean Momouth ARC has been issued a club station license
for our support using the club station at the Diana site as part of the
U.S. Army Military Affiliated Radio System (MARS).
At present we have six (6) club members in the MARS program, five
of which are members in training and are looking for more club members
to join the program and support our AAR2CAB effort.
We have configured a new MARS operating position
at the Diana site for the MARS station based on a Kenwood TS-450S/AT with a PK232MBX
and PC sound card for digital capability and a NVIS antenna. We have
also added an MM-3 and Bencher paddle for normal Amateur CW work.
Please contact the OMARC MARS station custodian is Steve, N2CKH/AAR2EY
for additional information and see the menu selection at the left for our MARS
web page for additional information.
OMARC and the Monmouth County ARES, RACES, Skywarn (MCARS) have recently
executed a Memorandum of Understanding for use of our club sponsored 145.110
repeater station as needed for training and support. To read the MOU with MCARS
click here.
Seen in the photo below shaking hands at the MOU signing are from left to right,
Marlo Montanaro, KA2IRQ of MCARS, the RACES Radio Officer, ARES DEC,
Skywarn Deputy Coordinator, ARRL PIO Monmouth County, NJ and
Steve Hajducek, N2CKH, OMARC Club Secretary.
To learn more about MCARS and their nets click here.
On Monday, 22 September 2003, Cable News 12 New Jersey
Reporter/Bureau Chief Ms. Leron Kornreich showcased the Amateur Radio Radio from
the historic Project Diana site located at the InfoAge Learning Center,
Camp Evans, Wall Township N.J.
Hosted by the Ocean-Mnmouth Amateur Radio Club (OMARC)
and joined by our sister area clubs, the Garden State ARC,
Neptune ARC and
QCWA NJ Chapter.
Amateur Radio was showcased in three live 3 minute segments covering numerous
aspects of the service at 6:50am, 7:50am and 8:20am. In addition
bits were filmed in between the live feeds that were later broadcast
along with re-broadcasts of the live segments.
Those on camera were Mr. Ron Olender WA2HZT (OMARC),
Mr. Sterling Rodgers N2GT (Nepture ARC), Mr. Bob Buus, W2OD
(GSARA) and Mr. Frank Gudicello K2TVY (QCWA).
Highlighted in the interview were various aspects of the Amateur
Radio Service to include Emergency communications, HF and
VHF communications, QRP, Doppler Kit building, License Classes
and more. We we even able to make contact with VK3MO for a
DX QSO via 20 meters during the last segment. The comments
made on camera by the studio regarding the Altoids QRP rigs
have to be seen and heard !
For those that did not catch the broadcasts via News 12, we plan to
view the program at the next OMARC Business meeting in October
and at the Diana site whenever it is open to the public before then.
On Saturday, August 9th Frank Fallon, N2FF, ARRL Hudson Div. Director attended
the monthly OMARC meeting and gave a wonderful presentation on a number of
current issues that the ARRL has been dealing with, especially the threat from the
Broad Band over Power Lines (BPL) issue. Frank detailed the threat and gave
examples of what the ARRL is doing to fight the FCC efforts to change Part 15
regulations.
After N2FF’s speech a motion was made by Ron Olender, WA2HZT, OMARC
President regarding a donation in the sum of $150.00 to the ARRL Spectrum
Defense Fund specifically for the BPL fight that was unanimously approved by
all the club members present.
After the meeting members gave N2FF a tour of the Project Diana site where
the first moon bounce signals were transmitted in the 1940’s and where OMARC
maintains and Amateur Radio presence, where OMARC presented a check to
N2FF assist in the this effort against BPL.
N2FF thanked the club for its generosity and encouraged all members who had
the ability to also consider a personal contribution. "It’s important that we get
squarely behind this effort. BPL has the ability to change the HF bands as we
currently know them by filling them with noise and at the same time puts in the
position of having a great potential for interfering with our neighbors who use
the new technology. It’s a double whammy and a very bad idea. I sure would
like to shake a little sense into Chairman Powel," said N2FF.
For more information visit the following ARRL BPL pages by clicking here.
To view the thank you letter from N2FF click here.
Aug 25: OMARC Board meeting at the Diana site.
Sept 11: OMARC 2nd Saturday Business meeting at the Bed Rock.
Sept 18: ARRL Amateur Radio Awareness Day - 10:00am-6:00pm at the Diana site
Open to the Public to showcase Amateur Radio.
Sept 26: OMARC Members Only picnic at the Diana site beginning at 12:00pm noon.
OMARC has been serving the Amateur Radio community of central New Jersey for
for 25 years. Specifically we serve the residents and visitors of the Ocean and
Monmouth county area with a club sponsored open 2 Meter repeater system and
various Amateur Radio activities, most of which are open to all interested parties.
"We are indeed a first responder," Haynie said on behalf of the nation's some 680,000 Amateur Radio
operators. Ham radio is more than "just having fun playing on the radio. It also produces capable, trained
volunteer communicators in systems of emergency telecommunications that are impervious to disasters
of all sorts." -- ARRL President Jim Haynie, W5JBP June 11, 2003 testifying on Capitol Hill on behalf of HR 713
OMARC, GSARA, Neptune ARC and QCWA presented the Amateur Radio Service live !
WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT THE BLP THREAT:
Serving the
Amateur Radio Community
for 25 Years
OMARC, Inc.
P.O. Box 267
Oakhurst, New Jersey 07755
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