From the Desk of AB9ZI - March 2026 Message
World Amateur Radio Day, held on April 18th each year, is celebrated worldwide by radio amateurs and their national associations, which are organized as member-societies of the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU). It was on this day in 1925 that the IARU was formed in Paris. American Radio Relay League (ARRL) Co-Founder Hiram Percy Maxim was its first president. The first Ham Radio Open House event last year was tied to IARU’s centennial celebrations. This year’s activity is part of ARRL’s “Year of the Club” theme. Here is the link to the ARRL information: https://arrl.informz.net/z/cjUucD9taT0zNTU0NTkzJnA9MSZ1PTUyMTA3MTMxMSZsaT00MTYyMzQ5Ng/index.html
We have a great club radio station at the Northbrook Public Library. What if we hold an open house to celebrate World Radio Day? This year April 18 falls on a Saturday. Just like for Field Day this is a perfect opportunity to show the community what amateur radio is all about. Best of all and unlike Field Day there is NO SET UP! All we need to do is inform the community and be there to demonstrate our station.
As part of the “Year of the Club” theme, the league requested all member clubs update their information page at the ARRL. Along with the customary officers’ names, number of members, etc. there is a check-list of activities and offerings of the club. I was pleasantly surprise that our North Shore Radio Club offers almost everything on the list!
One of the items on the ARRL Club check list items is social events. Along with meeting every Saturday morning at Max’s in Highland Park, we had another successful social at Portillo’s on February 24th.
34 of us enjoyed conversation and fine dining. Thank you Rich K9RD for planning and promoting this event!
Now that spring is nearly here (wishful thinking) it is time to talk about Hamvention. Has someone told you ham radio is dying? Well, come to Hamvention and meet with over 30 THOUSAND of your fellow hams! This is THE place to meet with ham radio gear vendors, check out their latest & greatest, and take advantage of Hamvention specials. We have our Flea Market space and someone to haul the tent, table, chair, and banner. Have something to sell? Bring it along and put it under the club tent. Details about who is going and where they are staying will be on and updated regularly on our groups.io main page. Contact Udo N0LSR to join. And as always we will be caravanning starting Thursday morning from Northbrook. Rumor has it that there is free transportation to and from starting in Northbrook, free entry to Hamvention, and a room to share (sorry not free). Contact me directly for those details.
Recently there have been some requests for time at our monthly club meetings to discuss upcoming events. Please understand that while we will make time available it will be AFTER a guest speaker. It is not fair for someone who is willing to spend their time informing us about our hobby to wait while we talk club business. Question: Who goes first at club meetings: Guest Speakers that’s WHO!
Our March club meeting will be at Heller Nature Center in Highland Park with a concurrent Zoom session.
As always up to date club information is available on the club website https://ns9rc.org/.
73, Brian Dubin AB9ZI,
President