My Current and Previously
Amateur call signs and QTHs:
Amateur call signs and QTHs:
This web page is dedicated
to the memories of my dear friends and my Uncle Ron
KA5NAL called himself the "Naturalized American Limey" (SK-1985) Ainsley you broke into my very first ham radio QSO and passed along your phone number giving instruction to call you; that led to a great friendship, one that will be remembered for the rest of my life. Helping each other to learn everything we could about ham radio was so much fun. You made it even more so. Those trips to New Orleans and Kenner were a blast. Sorry about the problem with your truck when I placed the wires for the secondary battery alongside the exhaust. I'm glad it wasn't serious. It was my first time doing something like that. It was an honor to have known you and especially to have worked emergency services with you many times and most notably in Slidell in 1983. No doubt you have your wings by now...enjoy the tour of the entire universe. Clyde Hurlbert W5CH (SK-1984) Former ARRL Delta Division Director Clyde it was a blast staying on the air with you while you were watching your house. Then we became each others' first contact on the WARC bands as they became available at midnight :01.
Charlie Kelly
HL9CK (SK-1995?) Charlie, thanks for taking a stubborn young man aside to explain to him the importance and the integrity of the amateur radio volunteer examination program. It was because of you that I became a VE and eventually ran two teams simultaneously and helped many people more obtain their tickets. Thank you Charlie.
KA5MWD
[1981]
Biloxi, Mississippi [Keesler
Air Force Base]
I obtained my Novice Class amateur radio license after taking classes given by Paul Goble - WA2VMS (now ND2X) at the Keesler Amateur Radio Club - K5TYP. Just a note: Paul's daughter Jennifer was a Novice licensee during the time I was taking the class. She was 9 years old at the time. When Jennifer was 11 she obtained the call sign NE0M. I call that very impressive.
N1CLS
[1982]
Biloxi
In August of 1982 I passed my General Class exam at the FCC Field Examination Office in New Orleans, Louisiana. I had to sign "KA5MWD Interim O-R" until my new license arrived in the mail. Using my home address of Lowell, Massachusetts I obtained a first area call sign and was later elected President of K5TYP. I wasn't the best radio club president in the world but was able to keep the radio club from being disbanded by the base MWR (Morale Recreation and Welfare) and I ran many amateur radio classes during my term in office. I also joined the Mississippi Gulf Coast Amateur Radio Association.
KB1LW
[1983]
Biloxi
I upgraded to
Advanced Class in August of 1983, exactly 30 days after my first attempt at the
New Orleans testing office. My heaviest involvement in amateur radio emergency
services occurred on the Mississippi Gulf Coast during this time. I served as an
AEC (Assistant Emergency Coordinator), under EC W5WLF, for Harrison County,
during some of the worst weather conditions I had ever experienced. For the
first time in my life I saw water so deep that two story homes were completely
submerged. Ainsley Phillips, KA5NAL and I drove to Slidell, Louisiana in
his Jeep CJ-7 to assist St. Taminy Parish officials when the Pearl River flooded
the area. Two years later, on Labor Day of 1985, as I was getting ready to
transfer out of Mississippi, Hurricane Elena decided to make landfall over
Biloxi and with 135 MPH winds. I had the privilege of working with the
American Red Cross in Pascagoula, Mississippi providing communications between
there and the Red Cross operations in Mobile, Alabama .
KB1LW
Within a week of my arrival to New England, Hurricane Gloria breezed through. She was more an annoyance than anything else by the time she reached Massachusetts. Guess who was blamed, by the local ham community, for bringing her up here with me from the Gulf Coast? All I can say is, " I didn't do it!" - an O.J. and Bart Simpson Quote.
HL9ZF
[Jun89 - Jun 90]
I received my HL9 ticket within 24 hours of arriving in country. Talk about expediency. The only time, in my little over 20 years of military service, that I ever saw anything move that fast, other than some of the air traffic I worked from the control tower, was my squad in basic training heading for the chow hall. I joined the AARCK, American Amateur Radio Club of Korea shortly thereafter. Charley Kelly, HL9CK convinced me of the integrity of the amateur radio Volunteer Examination program and because of him I decided to become a VE myself. Before leaving Korea I made a half-hearted attempt to obtain my Amateur Extra Class ticket. My plan was to do just that when the first call area got into the "W" 2x1 call signs. I did manage to pass the 20 wpm code test so walked out with a CSCE, certificate of successful completion, for that. Photo of me taken while on the VIP tour of the DMZ in May of 1990 standing less than 50 yards from the North Korean Border. You will NOT notice me standing there with my hand in my pocket. That is an order!! My headquarters squadron section commander and good friend, Stan Spillers, arranged it so that those of us who went on this DMZ tour received the same tour as did President Reagan on his visit. It was an experience I'll never forget.
KB1LW
[1990]
Alamogordo, New Mexico [Holloman
Air Force Base]
My orders said, "Report to White Sands Missile Range." I did that and nothing happened. So, I thought I'd better report to a human body. The unit I was to be assigned to had a classified mission and everything was stamped, "DATAMASKED." I wasn't quite sure to whom I was to report to but they sure put me to work. I ended up with the 4th Space Warning Squadron, of Air Force Space Command. My job there was so secret even I never really knew what it was. It didn't take long for me to find out how come even though I was sporting an Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University decal on the rear window of my vehicle, why most of the younger officers had Starfleet Academy decals on the rear windows of their own vehicles.
WK1V [1990]Alamogordo
Shortly after my family and I arrived in Alamogordo I joined the Alamogordo Amateur Radio Club. At the Alamogordo Hamfest, in September, I made an attempt at the Extra Class written exam - my first attempt since Korea. I had to bone up on my math a bit and ended up going back the next day -- and finally passed. Before my new license arrived the Air Force sent me to Omaha, Nebraska to attend a Frequency Management Seminar. I was on a layover at the airport in Phoenix, Arizona talking to Michelle, my XYL (wife for non-hams) on the telephone when she opened the mail and told me I had a new call sign. Having my Icom 2/AT with me I promptly got on the air (after finishing the phone call of course) to show off my new call sign. Later, in 1991, I took over the ARRL and W5YI VE team operations in Alamogordo. Michelle obtained her ticket in April of 1992, and received her call sign -- N1MBV. (Of course the rules did not allow me to participate in her testing process...but she aced her exams nonetheless) She was later elected Secretary of the AARC don't ya know. You'll never guess who actually recorded the club meeting minutes. And, it was from Alamogordo that I ended my 20+ year career with the Air Force on September 1st of 1993, what a trip!
WK1V[1993
- 2001]
Well, we're here! And this is where we are! For five and a half years we lived with my father-in-law in Lowell, MA. During that time I attended school at U/Mass Lowell and at Boston University's Corporate Education Center. I worked at Ham Radio Outlet in Salem, New Hampshire with some of the best people I've ever had the pleasure to work with and for. Most of them anyway.... I want to thank Bob Ferrero for letting be a part of his fine organization. I now work in the security access control industry. I was hired as a technical support specialist in May of '97 and in February of '98 I was invited to join the Y2K team. We made our security systems Y2K compliant for our customers who include over half of the Fortune 500 companies. In July of 2000 I was promoted to Sr. Specialist, Customer Technical Support. My wife and I purchased our own home located in Dracut, MA in February of 1999.
W6ZF[2001
- 2002]
To
keep Uncle Ron’s call sign in the family, I applied for it on March 16,
WK1V
[2002 - 2004]
On the 28th of May 2002
after missing my former call sign so much I applied to re-obtain it. On
the 15th of June 2002 my application was granted by the FCC and I once again
held the call WK1V.
W6ZF [2004
- 2007]
I now hold the call sign W6ZF once and for all. After two years I decided it's best to keep this call in the family and it's what I really wanted to do. I took a little bit of grief from the self-appointed "call sign cops" but who are they anyhow? It's the FCC that I have to deal with. I explained my situation to them and that's all there is to it. The license was re-granted on the 6th of June 2004.
W1KQ [2007
- Present]
More cw contesting and so many question marks in response to my call sign created the need for me to mention something in the Yankee Clipper Contesting Club reflector that I needed a cw friendly call. I received an email from a fellow club member who was keeping track of SK calls. Looking myself I wasn't aware of this call, W1KQ. Checking the SSDI database at Rootsweb.com I was able to get the data I needed to send to the FCC to request cancellation of the call. The call was granted in February and I've been happy with it since.
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W1KQ, Dracut, MA, USA