North Shore Radio Club members participate in many public service activities. Some are well known such as the Trek 100 and Chicago Marathon. Sometimes, we also do for our fellow hams. Yesterday, I participated along with Greg W9GAK, Rob K9RST, Mark WA9IVH, in a sad volunteer activity: the removal of the late Hap KC9RP Holly’s tower and antenna in order for his widow Stephanie to sell their home. This was quite a challenge as the tower and antenna were nearly as tall and wide as the back yard. There was no driveway access to the back yard, and there was no alley behind the house. Just to make things even more interesting, the Commonwealth Edison power line ran at an angle across the back yard from one corner of the house to the opposite corner of the utility pole at the back of the yard. Making things even more “challenging” the tower itself had enough wobble and sway to make climbing unsafe. In addition Hap had solar panels installed on the roof!

Last month I started out saying the weather was turning cooler.  As I sit at my desk it is still in near 80 degrees!

Our September meeting was QRP Night at Emily Oakes Nature Center in Skokie.   We had about 20 members and a few visitors who found us on the Internet.  A great time was had by all making contacts with low power, eating snacks, and fighting mosquitos.  Thank You to Howard, N9RUI for organizing it as he has done for many years!

As the weather turns cooler it means it’s time for QRP Night.  The September club meeting (9/9/2025) will be held at Emily Oakes Nature Center in Skokie.  Bring your low power radio, string up an antenna, and make contacts while eating S’mores cooked around a bonfire.    Complete details are on the club website.  https://ns9rc.org/qrp-night   I hope to see all of you there! 

The North Shore Radio Club’s Annual Auction will take place at our October meeting (10/14/2025) at the Heller Nature Center, 2821 Ridge Road in Highland Park. This is our ONLY fundraising event. Proceeds help to organize and pay for all the things your club is doing for you including operating our repeaters, meeting location rents, Field Day food and equipment etc.   Complete Information: https://ns9rc.org/nsrc-auction

When people think of Amateur Radio the picture is usually of someone sitting alone in front of a radio or two.   However, that isn’t the whole picture.  Our club has many annual outdoor events where we can show off our radio skills to the public and socialize.

In June we got together at Field Day to show off our skills of stringing antennas, setting up stations and contacting other Hams.   We had a great visible location along Willow Road and the signage placed brought many visitors to whom we were able to explain about hams’ alternative form of communications. Many were unaware that during disasters that take down land lines and cell phone towers, hams could provide essential public safety communications.  I believe we have at least three new members who joined our club after visiting our Field Day event.

Field Day 2025 was held on June 28-29th.  We had perfect weather which does not happen often.  We had four radio stations operated for 24 hours on SSB, CW, and FT8.  In addition, we made many radio station contacts Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning at the GOTA (Get On The Air) station.

This event was a success due to the many members who participated in the setup of our multiple antennas, radios, generators, banners and signage.  It took us about 10 hours on Friday afternoon and Saturday morning to set all of it up.  We also had plenty of participation in the tear down, which took a whole 50 minutes.

I recently attended Hamvention in Xenia, Ohio.  The population of Xenia is about 25,000, and the unofficial attendance at Hamvention this year exceeded 35,000.  That’s something to tell the next person who says, “Amateur Radio, are they still doing that?” Hamvention was a fun couple of days.   All in one location you have every manufacturer of ham equipment, software, and tools.  Vendors large and small were present ranging from large vendors like DX Engineering and HRO to folks selling one item.  This is the place to see the latest must have radios and accessories.