Just a reminder that the Mobile Amateur Radio Club will be having its Field Day activities on Saturday June 27 thru Sunday June 28, 2009 from 1:00 PM Saturday thru 1:00 PM Sunday at Fred K. Wright Park on Hwy 43 in Satsuma, Alabama. Directions and a map to the site are in the June Flutter, which you received a few weeks ago.

Please contact Chris Cook at n4sva@yahoo.com for more information. The Flutter, as well as a recent email from Chris, listed the items he needed and what we need volunteers for. Please contact him if you can provide any of these.

This will be a great opportunity for fun, fellowship, and to introduce a prospective “ham” to Amateur Radio.

73 from Charlotte, KF4RPB

This schedule begins June 2009

CAVEC TESTING: For more information, contact Larry Galey, KC4JPD, 625-0235, lgaley1@bellsouth.net, or David Robinson, WA4AVC, 649-5229, wa4avc@comcast.net.  Sessions will be held as necessary and requested. Prior notification with confirmation is needed.

Just a reminder that the Mobile Amateur Radio Club will be having its Field Day activities on Saturday June 27 thru Sunday June 28, 2009 from 1:00 PM Saturday thru 1:00 PM Sunday at Fred K. Wright Park on Hwy 43 in Satsuma, Alabama.

For those who do not wish to partake of the picnic fare the Club is providing, several eating establishments are nearby within a few mile radius of the park.

VOLUNTEERS AND DONATED ITEMS NEEDED!!!

To make this an enjoyable Field Day to all those involved and give everyone a some time, we need involvement from as many Members as possible.

Along with operation of the contest station (a time sign up sheet will be provided on upcoming e-mails to insure we have all time slots covered), we need volunteers for the following duties:

• Station/Antenna set up.

• Meal preparation for Saturday night dinner, Sunday breakfast, and Sunday lunch.
• Station dismantling and clean-up
• Station by manning by an Extra class licensed operator throughout the entire contest period would be desired, so that all operators can make full use of the entire HF band.

Also, other items are needed to be borrowed for station operation:

• Large Folding Table(approx 4) and Folding Chairs

• 2nd HF rig  with antenna tuner to provide 2 station operation.
• 2nd all band HF antenna to compliment the Club’s multi-band dipole
• VHF/UHF station for FM operation and GOTA station
• Fans or Barrel Fans
• Laptop and PSK31 interface cable/software that will operate on the Club’s ICOM rig.
• Camping tent (large) for those that might want to sleep overnight at the station location
• Lawn Chairs/Beach Chairs
• Headphones for  HF and VHF/UHF station operation.

Please contact Chris Cook at n4sva@yahoo.com or 251-586-4824 for more information

This will be a great opportunity for fun, fellowship, and to introduce a prospective “ham” to Amateur Radio.

It’s coming on June 13, 2009! It’s about to cut off the signal to your TV, and most likely you’re not prepared for it!

It’s almost as big a shift in home entertainment as happened sixty years ago when television replaced radio in America’s living rooms!

It’s DTV! Digital Television is going to change the way you watch television, and how you interact with your TV set. You’re finally going to get movie theater quality picture and sound at home!

• Digital TV is also going to reach into your pocketbook! All U.S. broadcast stations will stop sending analog TV signals, the kind your regular TV reads, on June 13, 2009. Without a new converter box, your TV will not work!

• Many stations are broadcasting a digital DTV signal right now along side their analog signal, but after 2009 they’ll only transmit in DTV.

• This digital signal can only be properly viewed on a new Plasma, DLP or LCD TV. If you don’t own one, you’ll need a converter box to watch digital signals “dumbed down” to show on your analog TV. In addition to the new Big Screen TV, you’ll also need a Dolby Surround Sound amplifier and speakers to get the DTV Dolby sound.

• All new TVs sold must have a digital tuner built-in as of March 1, 2007. Your old analog TV will need a set top converter box to receive television broadcasts after June 2009.

• Your cable provider may be able to send you digital cable or digital satellite signals right now, but that doesn’t mean that you can see High Definition programs on your television. If you have an old style picture tube television, a converter in your cable box can take the digital signal and “dumb it down” to analog so that you can see it. You’re still not seeing the super sharp DTV picture, or hearing the crystal clear digital sound.

• Digital Pictures will be free from the flicker, ghosts and snow seen on analog transmissions.  More than twice as sharp as Standard TV, DTV signals allow crystal clear images with higher resolution and picture quality than is possible with old style TV.

• DTV will provide programming in wide screen “movie format”.  The digital picture is so sharp you’ll be able to read the small text from your computer hooked up to the TV screen.

• DTV allows multicasting: broadcasters can provide a super sharp High Definition (HDTV) program or several Standard Definition programs at the same time.  Sending several program streams on one channel is called “multicasting”.  The number of programs a station can send on one digital channel depends on the sharpness (resolution) of each program.  DTV can provide interactive video and data services that are not possible with the old analog technology.

• DTV features Dolby Surround Sound to give you that full movie theater sound in your home instead of the old, tinny TV sound you grew up with. With a Surround Sound tuner and speakers installed, you’ll get roaring, sparkling sound assaulting your family from all directions: front, sides and rear!

• If you don’t have cable or satellite TV, you’ll need a Plasma or LCD TV with a DTV tuner, or a digital-to-analog converter box to see digital signals on your analog TV. Converter boxes will be available in retail stores during the transition.

• The National Telecommunications and Information Administration of the U.S. Department of Commerce will issue two $40.00 coupons per household that can be applied toward the purchase of digital-to-analog converter boxes. Coupons will be issued starting January 1, 2008.

• An Integrated DTV set is a digital TV with a built-in digital decoder or DTV receiver. If you have an Integrated DTV and live in an area with a DTV broadcast station, you won’t need anything else. You may need an antenna (an outdoor antenna is best) to receive over-the-air DTV broadcast programming. Integrated TVs can receive and display current analog signals.

Television is about to leap out of the Stone Age into the future! Make sure you’re ready for it!

It’s as easy as 123!

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There are so many acronyms used in defining television technology that is difficult to keep it all straight, and even worse, sometimes the acronyms are almost the same. That’s the case with DTV and HDTV. At first glance they would seem to be very similar, and yes they are definitely related, but there are also significant differences as well.

DTV stands for Digital TV, and HDTV stands for High Definition TV. To understand DTV, you have to go back before cable and satellite TV to the time when all broadcasts were picked up by antenna. Those television signals were broadcast in analog format, which is severely limited in how much audio and video information it can transmit. Back then all TV sets received analog signals and the main choice you had to make was how large the TV screen was going to be.

When first cable and then satellite came on the scene, they changed things dramatically. Instead of just sending analog signals they were able to broadcast in digital instead. That immediately improved both the picture and sound for televisions that were ready to receive digital signals. The improved video was far sharper and smoother than anything before, and the sound quality took a similar leap forward too. So DTV is simply a higher standard for TV broadcasting than was available in previous analog TV systems.

HDTV however, is the next evolutionary step in digital broadcasting. It takes DTV to a new level and makes both the television sound and video so much better. For instance, many DTV programs are sent in 525i format, which means that 525 lines of information are displayed on the screen and interlaced, or shown in alternate order. In other words, all the odd lines are shown in 1/10 of a second and then all the even lines are shown in the next 1/20 of a second. Because it all happens so fast you never clearly see the alternating pattern, but it is there.

Broadcasts made in HDTV however can reach up to 1080p, which is a standard where 1080 lines of information are shown on the screen and they are all shown together in a progressive scan instead of interlaced. What that means for you is a picture with much higher clarity and definition and action sequences that are much smoother to watch.

There are also other features of the HDTV format, including widescreen and Dolby 5.1 surround sound that take television viewing to a whole new level too, so DTV was the start of all of this improved entertainment, but HDTV is where we will really see the benefits unfold for all of us.

Since the first Friday of July falls on the Independence Day weekend, the July general membership meeting will move to the 2^nd Friday, July 10^th.

On April 23^rd, Sister Lucindia Claghorn (KI4ZCJ) was awarded a Volunteer Mobile “Heart of Gold” Award for her advocacy of and work with the mentally ill, in the category of Health & Welfare. The recognition luncheon took place at the Country Club of Mobile, and recognized local individuals and groups for their volunteer community service in several categories. The luncheon included an invocation and proclamation by Mobile City Council member Clinton Johnson. Guests at Sister’s table included Gerald Jones (KD4DLJ) and Brian Naylor (KF4IRC), representing MARC and ARES, and Archbishop Emeritus of the Catholic Arch-Diocese of Mobile, Oscar Lipscomb.

The 2010 Mobile Amateur Radio Club Hamfest & Computer Show will be held on April 10, 2010, at the Elk’s Lodge, 2671 Dauphin Island Pkwy, Mobile AL.  For information contact Jerry Myers KG4YIA, kg4yia@email.com ;  251-473-5813

MARC Hamfest 2010

We regret that the Train-The-Trainer Course scheduled for June 6 and 13 has been cancelled due to lack of interest.  This course was offered by the Southwestern AL ARES Group.  If you would be interested in a future course, or wish information on how to find such courses offered in other areas, contact Chuck Miller, KD4NGA.  kd4nga@arrl.net

TO: All Amateur Radio Operators:
RE: Field-Day 2009 – Mobile County

The ARRL’s Field-Day is June 27 & 28, 2009. There will be at least two different sites open to all licensed Amateur Radio Operators. We invite, welcome, and encourage all HAMs to set aside some time during this weekend to join in the fun, fellowship, and the opportunity to communicate with other HAMS throughout the US and Canada.

The first and main site will be at Satsuma, sponsored by the Mobile Amateur Radio Club; for more information see the MARC “Flutter” or www.w4iax.com or contact Chris Cook (N4SVA)  n4sva@yahoo.com (Click on image to enlarge)

Map to Field Day location, 2009

The second and remote site will be at Irvington, sponsored by the Southwestern Alabama ARES Group. This site is a Federal Installation and by design is for those individuals who need an air conditioned environment. There is limited space at this site and no food or drinks will be provided, operators must bring their own. Prior approval will be required, contact Chuck Miller (KD4NGA) 341-1004  kd4nga@arrl.net .

Again, please make plans to join us for Field-Day.

Thanks,

Charles H. Miller Jr., KD4NGA
President – Mobile Amateur Radio Club (MARC)

Note:  Field Day is open to the general public, and non-licensed individuals may operate under the supervision of a licensed Amateur Radio operator.   Bring your family and  friends, and invite anyone you know who is interested in learning about ham radio.

SB SPCL @ ARL $ARLX006
ARLX006 ARRL Southeastern Division Vice Director Sandy Donahue, W4RU
(SK)

ZCZC AX06
QST de W1AW
Special Bulletin 6  ARLX006
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT  May 5, 2009
To all radio amateurs

SB SPCL ARL ARLX006
ARLX006 ARRL Southeastern Division Vice Director Sandy Donahue, W4RU
(SK)

The ARRL is sad to report that Southeastern Division Vice Director
Sandy Donahue, W4RU, of Dothan, Alabama, passed away on May 4. He
was 63. Donahue, an ARRL Life Member, served as Vice Director since
January 2002 and as Georgia Section Manager from 1997-2001. In his
professional life, Donahue worked at a television station in Atlanta
for almost 25 years before retiring.

Licensed for almost 50 years, Donahue received his first call sign
– WA4ABY — at age 15. Exhibiting a lifelong commitment to public
service throughout his amateur career, he always supported the ARRL
and the Amateur Radio Service. Donahue was a fixture at every major
hamfest in Southeastern Division — and many across the country –
as well as many of the smaller ones in his area, promoting the ARRL.
He spent the weekend of May 2-3 at the BirmingHamfest 2009.

Former Southeastern Division Director and current ARRL Honorary Vice
President Frank Butler, W4RH, appointed Donahue as an Assistant
Director in 1982. “We spent hours and hours together at the ARRL
table at so many hamfests and conventions,” Butler recalled. “Sandy
became my Vice Director in 2002, and in the next six years, I got to
really know him. Over the past 26 years, we must have sold thousands
worth of ARRL books, study guides, operating aids, pins, patches and
stickers. Sandy was always promoting the League to hams, encouraging
them to become active members of the ARRL. He took great pride in
the number of people who joined the ARRL through him.”

Butler said that after a hard day’s work at the ARRL booth, “all
Sandy ever wanted was a good dinner! He loved to eat, and he showed
me many fine places to do that, from Atlanta to Birmingham, to
Orlando to Miami! I’m glad we got to do that again the last weekend
of his life — at the BirmingHamfest 2009.”

Current Southeastern Division Director Greg Sarratt, W4OZK, fondly
remembered Donahue: “I was happy to say that I spent this past
weekend with Sandy where he spent the last day of his life doing
what he loved — in the ARRL booth, representing the ARRL at the
Birmingham, Alabama hamfest, catching up with old friends. Sandy
was, as usual, in rare form all weekend, joking and having a good
time.”

Sarratt said that on Sunday, May 3, “Breakfast began with Sandy
surrounded by a group of friends, where he, as usual, did his dead
level best to get the best of me with a joke. On this occasion, he
managed to succeed, and, in fact, he continued to enjoy this until
we parted ways at the conclusion of the hamfest. Sandy could relate
to all hams, both old and young. He — and his sense of humor –
will be sorely missed.”

ARRL Chief Executive Officer David Sumner, K1ZZ, said that even
before Donahue sought elective office in the ARRL, “Sandy was a
fixture at conventions and hamfests, promoting the League and
supporting the association in any way he could. Sandy thought of the
ARRL as his family, and he was an important part of it.”

Jeff Beals, WA4AW, was a long-time friend of Donahue’s. “I’ve known
Sandy for more than 25 years,” he told the ARRL. “He was very, very
devoted to Amateur Radio, especially the public service side:
Emergency Communications, traffic handling and helping out wherever
and whenever he could. We had a lot in common.” Beals currently
serves as an Assistant Section Manager and Affiliated Club
Coordinator in the ARRL’s Northern Florida Section.

“Sandy had developed an interest in community theatre these past
couple of years,” Beals said. “He had been involved in a few
productions with ‘The Featured Players’ group in Dothan.”

ARRL Technical Relations Manager Brennan Price, N4QX, said that
Donahue was one of the three ARRL Volunteer Examiners who
administered his first license exam back in 1997: “He was helpful
after the exam as well, always eager to share his experience with a
variety of Amateur Radio activities with me and other impressionable
young hams at the Georgia Tech Amateur Radio Club. While I suspect
that his stories were sometimes accompanied by a degree of
exaggeration for dramatic effect, I enjoyed them and will miss
them.”

Service details will be made available when they become known.

ARRL Southeastern Division Vice Director Sandy Donahue, W4RU (SK) — We
are sad to report that our Southeastern Division Vice Director Sandy
Donahue, W4RU, of Dothan, Alabama, passed away on May 4. He was 63.
Sandy was an ARRL Life Member and served as Vice Director since January
2002. Licensed for almost 50 years, Sandy received his first call –
WA4ABY — at age 15. Sandy exhibited a lifelong commitment to public
service throughout his amateur career and always supported the ARRL and
the Amateur Radio Service. Before becoming Vice Director in 2002, Sandy
served as ARRL Georgia Section Manager from 1997-2001.

I was happy to say that I spent this past weekend with Sandy where he
spent the last day of his life doing what he loved, volunteering at the
Birmingham, Alabama Hamfest in the ARRL booth representing the ARRL and
catching up with old friends.

Sandy was, as usual, in rare form all weekend, joking and having a good
time. His gregarious nature and offbeat sense of humor often left
others with mixed feelings, but always tendered with the respect that
should be paid to someone with his experience and dedication to our
much loved hobby of amateur radio. Sandy could relate to all Hams, both
old and young, and he, and his sense of humor, will be sorely missed.

Breakfast began Sunday morning with Sandy surrounded by a group of
friends, where he, as usual, did his dead level best to get the best of
me with a joke. On this occasion, he managed to succeed, and, in fact,
he continued to enjoy this until we parted ways at the conclusion of
the Hamfest.

I also remember several months ago at the Tampa Hamfest Sandy was
enthralled that his beloved Florida Gators were playing The Alabama
Crimson Tide in the SEC Championship game, it was with great
consternation that we had to inform Sandy during dinner that the Gators
had won. He was quick to remind us of how superior the Gators were to
the Crimson Tide, and we took his jesting with good humor. To Sandy, we
say Go Tebow and we will miss you.

More information, including service arrangements, will follow as they
become available.

73,
Greg Sarratt, W4OZK
ARRL Southeastern Division Director
w4ozk@arrl.org

All available hams are asked to assist with this exercise (Thurs. May 7 — 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.) in any way they can and using whatever modes they have.  You do not need to be signed up as an ARES member.  We realize this is a work day.  If you can help by going to a particular location, riding with a response vehicle, or from your home, please contact Patti.  If you are at work and are able to at least monitor the radio, listen when you can to experience what is going on, and you might be able to relay traffic at some point, also.  If you can help with the exercise, contact Patti Link KI4JEO ki4jeo@gmail.com .

THIS IS AN EXERCISE

TO: Alabama ARES, ARRL Headquarters, Alabama Emergency Management Agency
FROM: Les Rayburn, N1LF-Alabama Section Emergency Coordinator
SUBJECT; Tropical Storm Gathering Strength In the Gulf of Mexico

1. THIS IS AN EXERCISE.

2. A TROPICAL STORM HAS FORMED IN THE GULF OF MEXICO. THE NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER’S PROJECTED TRACK SHOWS A GOOD POTENTIAL FOR AN IMPACT ON OR NEAR THE ALABAMA GULF COAST MID-WEEK.

3. ALL ARES MEMBERS ARE URGED TO MONITOR THIS RAPIDLY DEVELOPING STORM AND MAKE PREPARATIONS NOW TO PROVIDE COMMUNICATIONS SUPPORT.

4. ALABAMA SECTION REQUESTS A CONFERENCE CALL WITH ARRL HQ ON MONDAY OR TUESDAY TO DISCUSS THE POTENTIAL FOR ARESMAT SUPPORT.

5. PLEASE FORWARD THIS MESSAGE TO ALABAMA ARES MEMBERSHIP VIA ALL POSSIBLE MEANS.

73 LES RAYBURN, N1LF

THIS IS AN EXERCISE

—– Original Message —–

From: Patti Link

Sent: Wednesday, April 22, 2009 11:11 AM

Subject: Upcoming Department of Homeland Security Exercise for Alabama Region 1

Okay folks. Here is some more information on the exercise May 7th.

As you know, the scenario for this exercise is a Cat 4-5 Hurricane tracking up Mobile Bay causing massive impact on Region 1 of Alabama. The purpose of this exercise is to test communication interoperability. We have been invited to join this exercise by the Alabama Department of Homeland Security.

The preliminary plans call for deployment to each of the 9 EOC’s in Region 1. These nine are:

Baldwin, Choctaw, Clarke, Conecuh, Escambia, Mobile, Monroe, Washington, and Wilcox. In addition to these 9 EOC’s, we will have a station set-up at the Poarch Creek Indian Tribe EMA.

The state will be testing 2-4 R.C.V.’s (remote communication vehicles) and has requested an amateur radio operator for each RCV.

We will also have up to 10 sites in Baldwin county (final decision on these sites yet to be made).

We will be setting up a command site at the Baldwin County EOC on a 20 acre field adjacent to the EOC. Temporary towers will be erected and many agencies will have command posts in this area.

In addition to this exercise, the Air Force will be running Lifesaver09. The scenario for this exercise is a train has traveled through 3 states leaking chlorine gas causing mass casualties. We have been asked to provide operators at two hospitals (North Baldwin and Thomas) along with operators at the EOC working with the Alabama Dept. of Public Health.

Finally, we have been asked to demonstrate some additional capabilities of amateur radio. These include: activating our regular Baldwin county net; activating the Mobile county net; activating the Escambia, FL net; operating simplex mode with no repeater use in the entire region; HF communication to the state EOC; Digital modes such as D-Star and PSK HF; Winlink 2000 VHF and HF; communicating with the National Weather Service; and anything else they think of to throw at us!

As you can see, we need everyone available to assist in meeting these objectives. This is a huge opportunity for amateur radio to show our capabilities to these served agencies. I do not know all of the details yet but I know part of the plan is for amateur radio to be the ONLY form of communication that is operational.

>>FROM LATER EMAIL: Okay, first mistake to fix. When I said, “I know part of the plan is for amateur radio to be the ONLY form of >>communication that is operational.” I mean for ONE part of the plan NOT THE ENTIRE PLAN. This exercise involves MANY different agencies >>and is a communication interoperability exercise. We will be interfacing with MANY agencies. Sorry for the mixup.

>>73, Patti KI4JEO

I am in the process of trying to schedule operators at all of these various locations. As you can tell, I need some operators that are willing to go to a specific location and I also need some operators to work from their home base. If you are willing to travel, please let me know ASAP. If you have a preference for where you go, please let me know that also. If you have mobile capabilities, please let me know. I will have some vehicles with radios that are available for use so if you are willing to drive someone else’s vehicle, please let me know.

Also, I need skilled operators in the various modes we will be using. It is our hope to pair skilled operators with less skilled ones as a learning experience. So please let me know your skill level in the various modes.

This exercise is scheduled to run for 8 hours May 7, 2009 starting at 8am. Once I get responses from all of you, I will put the info into an excel spreadsheet and distribute it. I also have an excel schedule of what our known activities are for that day. (Keep in mind we don’t know everything planned and won’t know everything planned.) If you CANNOT read an excel spreadsheet, let me know that also and I’ll get the information to you in another way.

Lastly, if I have forgotten to tell you something or left something out, PLEASE let me know. My job is to get the players in place. You guys are the ones who will do the work and show the entire country how valuable amateur radio is. This is a HUGE exercise and I really appreciate your commitment and KNOWLEDGE!!!!!

73, Patti Link  KI4JEO    DEC - Alabama Region 1       ki4jeo@gmail.com

P.S. Please send this email to any amateur radio operator you think would assist that did not receive it. I tried to get everyone but I’m sure I’ve missed many!!!!

Mental Health America SWA is so pleased to announce that 2007 National Mental Health America’s Clifford Beers Advocacy Award Winner, Sister Lucindia (KI4ZCJ) Claghorn’s book, “Angel of Love – Prayers for the Mentally Ill“, a journal of her journey with Schizophrenia, is available in a book form for Internet download on our website:　www.mhaswa.org The book is free to those who wish to download it.　The book download is on the front page next to the Donate Button, which is available for anyone to contribute toward Lucindia’s work with and devotion to Mental Health America in Southwest Alabama. You may simply donate or you may become a member.

Many thanks to all who support of our organization in the past and in our future; volunteers are the true heroes of Mental Health America.

Lynn Anderson, Membership Chairman MHA SWA

The annual “Peddlin’ For a Cure” bicycle ride started in Monroeville, and ended in Mobile, Good Friday, April 10, 2009. The annual ride, held each Good Friday, is a benefit for the American Cancer Society. MARC was asked to provide communication services at Hank Aaron Stadium, the finish line for this year’s bicycle ride.

Our station Trustee, William Autry, KI4YZC; and Vice President, Marvin Waller, KJ4BBT volunteered to serve at the event. They were joined by hundreds who came out to support the event. The Mobile Fire Department lifted its huge American Flag, which served as the official finish line. Local media was also present to interview a number of riders after their completion of the 100 mile ride.

Repeaters from Monroeville, Bay Minette, and the Mobile EMA (146.940 MHz) were linked using Echolink to provide communication throughout the entire ride. A number of stations were located at rest stops to provide communications at each break point. Other break station operators were K4JIE (Crossroads), and KD4EB (Spanish Fort). N4ZWB, KG4BCA, and AE4BI served as Net Control Operators at various stages of the ride.

A number of rest stops did not have assigned operators. Club members interested in being involved next year are encouraged to make note of the date of the event. The event is being placed on our club’s active calendar.          Marvin Waller, KJ4BBT

Ed. Note: Many thanks to Bill and Marvin for volunteering for this at the last minute. Since the communication organizers did not contact MARC directly, and due to a computer crash and lost internal emails at the time we were actually forwarded something about the ride, we were not able to send out a general announcement and request for volunteers. Hopefully, next year we will have time to plan ahead and provide more help along the route.

“Special Service Award Presented to the University of South Alabama School of Engineering For Recognition of  the Many Years of Outstanding Support To The Mobile Amateur Radio Club ; April 2009″     (ARRL)

A plaque expressing MARC’s appreciation for being allowed to hold our meetings at the College of Engineering for these many years was presented to the Dean, Dr. John Steadman, on April 7, 2009. Presenters were MARC Secretary Charlotte Naylor (KF4RPB) and Trustee Brian Naylor (KF4IRC). The plaque will hang in the Dean’s conference room. Dr. Steadman was a ham radio operator before deciding that he preferred building equipment to operating with it. When he became an engineer he allowed his license to lapse. We suggested that when he retires . . . !! The Engineering School needs more space, and will soon break ground for a larger building. Dr. Steadman said they would continue to welcome us as guests at the new building when it is completed.

MARC also would like to thank Tammy Vance, who facilitates our room reservation.

(From the April 2009 Kerchunker, newsletter of SBARC)

The Lillian Group, LARG, has a site on Facebook.com.   Please let everyone know that they are welcome to join the group and keep up with things in Lillian.

Alan Rundall, K4DEY.   aerundall@gulftel.com

On the morning of March 14^th, 10 MARC members gathered at the UMS/Wright stadium for the SW Alabama District Adult Special Olympics track & field events. Despite the forecast of a high-percentage chance of rain, coordinator Frank Barragan was determined that the games would go on. He has worked with the adult Special Olympics in this area since about 1981 and has only been rained on once. The various events were completed ahead of schedule, and only a brief rain shower caused everyone to huddle under the nearest shelter. It was quickly over and the games resumed. The overcast sky meant wonderful, comfortable weather for the activities, and the event was a great success. It is heartwarming to see the dedication and good humor of these athletes (many of whom could leave us hams in the dust) and to observe the friendships among the participants and volunteers which have developed over the years. Many thanks to all who helped: the volunteers who coordinate this event greatly appreciate our involvement. Even though the PA system was in use this year, the announcer needed a ham (Sister) to relay which events were starting, and other announcements from the various venues. The hams would also have been needed to relay requests for medical assistance, which fortunately was not needed. Beside Sister, the two hardest workers were probably Brian and Garrett, who manned the start and finish line, respectively, as the finish needed to know how many runners for each race and in what lane, the start needed a heads up when the timers were ready, and the timers need to hear the starting gun. Good job to all, and hope you will be back next year. This is a great chance to shine for Amateur Radio.

Many thanks to all who helped:  Sister Lucindia Claghorn, KI4ZCJ, Rick Drews, KJ4HRG, Claude Fillingham, KI4ZCM, Janet Gardner, KF4JIG, Gerald Jones, KD4DLJ, Brian Naylor, KF4IRC, Charlotte Naylor, KF4RPB, Bobby Smith, KG4KNR, Garrett Thompson, KI4VKL, Pete Thompson, AB4QW

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