Learn about Repeaters! (GMRS + HAM)

Walkie-talkies may be good when the power goes out or cell service is down, but they only work a relatively short distance, despite what the retail package may say. So how can you stay in contact when you are miles aways from each other or surrounded by tall East Texas pine trees? Repeaters are the answer. And now they are available to GMRS users - a relatively new type of radio that is both inexpensive and easy to start using.

The Rusk County Amateur Radio Club will host a special presentation on “Repeaters” this Thursday evening during their regular monthly meeting. Participants can learn how repeaters work, what kind of radio to use and how to find repeaters available right here in Henderson, Tyler and Longview. 

“Learning how to use a ham radio or a GMRS repeater is a great way to be prepared for the worst,” said David Chenault, a member of the Rusk County ARC. “Almost anyone can take advantage of these systems that groups and individuals maintain at no cost to users.”

In addition to helping people stay in touch with each other, repeaters--both GMRS and ham--are often used to report severe weather during storms and hurricanes.

The presentation Thursday evening is just one in a series of topics specifically of interest to GMRS users. Chenault says people wanting to use GMRS radios need to get an FCC license. He adds that the good news is the license fee is only $35 and is valid for 10 years. Best of all, almost anyone can get one because there is no test to take like there is for ham radio licenses.

The program is free and open to the public. It begins at 7 p.m., Thursday, February 9,  at the meeting room at the South Main Church of Christ, 401 S. Main, in Henderson. 

 

All invited for fun and fellowship!

Winter Field Day is at the end of January and promises to be another fun operating event. Of course, it's also a great social event where everyone gets to hang out around the campfire and enjoy some chili! (See a past Winter Field Day)

Keith has graciously offered his Deer Camp just up the road at the site. While it would definitely be described as "roughing it" by most, the deer camp does boast a small metal building with carport-style canopy to provide shelter from the elements. There is no commercial power or running water (and no bathrooms) but there are battery operated lights, a propane heater, a campfire and an amazing set of stars in the night sky! The road from the County Road to the camp is also a little rough. A high-clearance vehicle, like a truck, is recommended. However, don't let you car stop you from coming. Someone will be able to meet you at the gate if needed. 

We'll have two radios setup; one for voice and one for CW along with multiple antennas. There's be lots of food and fellowship as well! We'll have chili and hotdogs, snacks and more. Although not required, feel free to bring something with you to add to the feast. 

Everyone needs to bring their own lawn chair. If you come early enough and would like to fish there is a pond with catfish and lots of roads and trails if you are up to a hike through the woods. Remember, there are no restroom facilities so plan according. Bring a friend and hope to see you there!

Date: January 28th & 29, 2023
Time: Come & Go. Well meet there around 10 am to set up. (The contest starts at 1pm and lasts 24 hours unless we decide to give up early and go home.)
Location: Keith’s (KN5G) Deer Camp 32.174470, -94.735544 (Map)
(The deer camp is on the west side of county road 222, between FM 3135 and State HI way 43, northeast of Henderson, Texas.)

A very Merry Christmas to all!

The club hosted it's annual Christmas Party Saturday at noon and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves! The party was catered from Tia Juanita's Fish Camp and guests tore through the chicken and steak fajitas. 

It was very interesting to listen to the variety of conversation around the tables while people visited and enjoyed the meal. Very few of them involved ham radio! After eating, several folks got a chance to tour Lion's Stadium as a small bonus.

Merry Christmas to all and keep the radios on!

FREE: "Radio for Everyone" program

UPDATE: Thanks to everyone who attended our program! The turnout was tremendous. Anyone who would like more information about GMRS, please contact the club.

(Original post) The next club meeting will be a first for the RCARC! We will have a presentation called, "Radio for Everyone" detailing the variety of options available for someone new to the radio world.

Recent changes by the FCC have lowered the hurdles to get a radio license, especially a General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS) license. This means that practically everyone can get and begin using a GMRS radio for a variety for purposes. 

GMRS radio are very popular among Jeep enthusiasts and other hiking, off-roading and overlanding groups. Some off-road parks even require the vehicle to be equipped with a GMRS radio. GMRS is also useful for emergency communications situations or for community response teams like CERT and SKYWARN. 

Join us Thursday, September 8, 2022 for a special program to learn how GMRS can help you and your family prepare for the unexpected or enjoy the outdoors. The program is free and hosted by the RCARC. It will be held in the Multi-purpose Building (or Community Room) at the South Main Church of Christ, 402 South Main, Henderson, Tx. Parking is available on the Van Buren side of the building. 

KI5GPN (Gary Jarvis): SK

The club is saddened by the passing of one of our most enthusiastic members: Gary, KI5GPN. Gary lost his battle to cancer a few weeks ago and his memorial service was held last week. Below is his obituary. A loyal friend and a compassionate ham, Gary will be deeply missed. 

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Mr. Gary Jarvis, 78, passed away on May 15, 2022 in Palestine, TX after losing his battle with cancer.

Gary was born in Henderson, TX to the late AJ and Evon (Rogers) Jarvis on August 20, 1943 and was a graduate of Henderson High School. Always trying to find a new adventure, he joined the United States Air Force in November 1961 and continued traveling the world as a Merchant Marine before retiring in 2003 as a Chief Engineer for Tidewater. In his spare time, he enjoyed two-way radios, boating, traveling, and spending time with his family and friends.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his brother Dwight Jarvis, and step-father Les Tolbirt.

He is survived by his wife, Betsy of Raleigh, NC; five children, Michelle of Huntsville, TX, Gary Jr. of Houston, TX, William of Montgomery, TX, Julie of Bentonville, AR, and Jillian of Durham, NC; siblings, Phillip and wife Debbie of Brazoria, TX, Patricia and husband Larry of Sugar Land, TX, and William and wife Stephanie of Pecan Grove, TX; 10 grandchildren, 11 great-grandchildren; and many friends.

Graveside services for Mr. Jarvis were held on Friday, June 3, 2022 at Rusk County Memorial Gardens at 11:00 AM with Chuck Swindell officiating.

RCARC donations now tax deductible!

Donations made to the Rusk County Amateur Radio club are now tax deductible, thanks to the recent approval of the IRS. While the club was begun nearly a decade ago as a non-profit group, the club began working on the process of formal non-profit status several years ago. It was the most recent efforts of Karan Haverstock, our current club president, that finally pushed the paperwork through.

"I'm so excited to finally have this done," Karan told the club during a recent meeting. "It took some time, but now that we have our confirmation, I'm glad we did it."

The club is now formally recognized by the IRS as a non-profit "501(c)3" organization which allows donors to deduct most contributions when filing income tax forms with the IRS. Most corporations and foundations that offer donations or grants also require receiving organizations to be designated as a 501(c)3. It provides transparency and serves as verification that the organization it committed to a charitable cause. In the RCARC's case, that is to promote the Amateur Radio, provide education in the radio sciences and provide public service using radio such as storm spotting or emergency response. The designation also helps ensure that funds are used appropriately and do not personally benefit club members. 

The RCARC is also registered with GuideStar which helps to track non-profit organizations and provide transparency to the public. This opens the door for donations from companies like Amazon which will donate a portion of sales to 501(c)3 groups. (Visit Smile.Amazon.com to have your purchases count!) The RCARC is also recognized by TechSoup, a verification company that qualifies groups for donations from large technology corporations such as Google and Microsoft. 

ARES Ops support Annual 10K race

Rusk County ARES members were once again on hand for Henderson's annual Resurrection Run. This year, the race was expanded from the typical 5K run to include a 10K as well, which posed new challenges for the group.

"When are so glad to have you all help out," said Kayla, who oversees race preparations. "It was different this year, but your group is always so prepared and ready to go!"

Although the weather was perfect for this year's race, there was a snag during the middle of the event. Several of the 10K runners took a sudden wrong turn during the route and got lost. It was the quick work of the Rusk County ARES operators who were able to spot the wayward runners and report them back on track. 

Before the race began, ARES members were deployed to several locations along the race route to report on runners' progress and unexpected emergencies. One operator was assigned to a mobile unit driven by a race official. 

The race, once again, proved a valuable training ground for more serious emergency response scenarios while allowing all the operators a fun time to get active. Plus, everyone got a free t-shirt!

A little POTA during Spring Break '22

Don spent part of his Spring Break working Parks on the Air (POTA) from Martin Creek State Park last week. David tagged along for some of the fun as well. 

"Really enjoyed working a little POTA from Martin Creek this morning with Straight-Key Don," said David. "He got around 50 QSOs, I finished with 21."

The weather was nearly perfect for the activation. 

Saturday morning Fox Hunt a success!

Another Fox Hunt in in the books as several members of the RCARC took off around town trying to locate the hidden transmitter. Members met at Fair Park for to check in and get the initial details of the hunt before heading off in multiple directions. Several club members used new attenuators recently built at a the March club meeting.

Ultimately, the fox was hiding in the woods behind the HISD Admin building on Crosby Street, on the north side of Henderson. It took about two hours for most of the members to track now the VHF signal.

New Fusion Repeater In Service

The Rusk County Amateur Radio Club has recently upgraded its 146.780 FM repeater with a Yaesu, DR-1X Fusion repeater. The DR-1X Fusion repeater will be running in AMS, (Automatic Mode Select) and will operate in either the traditional Analog FM mode, or in the Yaesu C4FM Digital mode. This means that users who had the 146.780 analog repeater programmed into their mobile, base, or hand-held radios can still access the repeater with traditional analog FM transceivers.

However, users will want to program their radios with the 131.8 Hz. PL tone in the Encode and Decode modes. The PL tone was needed in the past to access the 146.780 repeater. Now it will be needed in the user’s radio to open the squelch in the user’s radio when the repeater is operating in the Analog FM mode. This will prevent the user from having to listen to the digital noise if their radio will not receive and decode the C4FM digital signal when the repeater is operating in the digital mode.

The new Fusion repeater is paired with a new SCOM 7300 repeater controller so it has some extended features and options that the old repeater’s controller did not offer. The new repeater is located at the same location as the club’s previous repeater but is operating a a slightly lower output power so the repeater’s coverage area may be slightly less than in the past.

If you have a Yaesu radio capable of operating in the C4FM digital mode try it with the new repeater and see how you like the C4FM digital mode, and as in the past any analog FM transceiver should work as well with the new repeater.