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56 FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | JUNE 2016 The Amateur Radio Club. Is it boring? Just for men? The answer is no! I joined this club shortly after I moved here in 2010. There were several things motivating me then. First of all, I wanted to help build the emergency preparedness of Four Seasons. I still do. Second, I wanted to be as personally prepared as possible, in case the big one arrives. I still do. And third, I wanted to channel my late husband. He had died shortly before I moved here. He worked in aerospace. More specifically in satellite communication. He was a radio frequency engineer and I thought that if I concentrated really hard, maybe some of his energy and knowledge could be communicated to me. Did I really believe that? No, not really. But somehow being part of this group made me feel closer to him. It was also a way to honor some of what he had taught me. He had helped bring more left brained involvement into my rather right-brained life. And I wanted to continue that trend. Not everyone in this club is a ham radio operator. The club also encompasses another very important and very easily learned emergency preparedness component, The Family Radio Service, or FRS. Basically, you use a hand-held radio which is a walkie- talkie, and it can play a huge part in keeping Four Seasons safe. But we need more people. Just think: with a little training you could have a tool with which you could help take care of yourself, whoever lives with you, and the community in case of a disaster. The club conducts training sessions for this. And there is weekly practice, called a net, in which we all check in with each other using a prepared script. It takes only five to 10 minutes weekly on Wednesday evenings, if you are available. That's a lot of bang for the buck! For years, I participated in the club, as an "FRS member." I went to the monthly meetings, as did many others, several of them women. I participated in the weekly nets and occasionally attended an FRS training session for brush up. And I talked about getting a ham radio license. And I studied, in brief bursts, for my technician's license. I decided not to pursue the license because I got busy with other activities. But I never stopped my participation in the club because I really believe in it. If we could get more people trained and practicing with FRS, we could have a system in place that would be a real emergency preparedness backbone for Four Seasons. Wouldn't that be terrific? Now don't you want to help? I'd like to be the first woman in the club to get her license while living in Four Seasons. The current Amateur Radio Club president did a sneaky thing. He offered a one day crash course, about six hours of study followed by an exam for the entry level ham radio license. How could I pass that up? I couldn't. I spent that Friday with three other students and three volunteer examiners and took the test. And guess what? I passed! I have a call sign! I'm proud of myself. And I'm sure Murray (my late husband) would have been proud of me, too. So now it's your turn. Come to a meeting. Hear what's going on. See our new radio room. Learn how you can participate. Learn how easy it is. You really do owe it to yourself. Meetings are held in Rec Center North on the last Friday of the month at 10 am. ~ Laurie Larson, KM6CIT Amateur Radio Club Our Savior's Lutheran — ELCA • Food Pantry Mon., 9 - 11 am • 20 Self Help Groups • Synagogue 3rd Friday, 7 pm • Toddler Nite Wed., 6 pm • Worship 8 & 9:30 am May 29 - Sept. 4 • Worship 8 & 10:30 am Sept. 11 - May, 2017 • Hmong Christian Alliance: Sundays 1-4, Wed Nights 7 pm (951) 849-3343 1320 W. Williams, Banning oursaviorsbanningca.com