W7GRA meeting of 1/21/2015
Meeting called to order at 7:02PM by Ted.
Read minutes of our last meeting from 10/30/2014.
Treasurers report: $1830.95 balance, no income nor expenditures since last meeting.
Membership report: We started the year with one paid up member, who paid his 2015 dues last year.
Old business:
Ted said our discussions of an antenna building party is still a ‘go’. Possible dates for such an event this year could be in March or April. We discussed building 40 meter dipoles. At least four present displayed interest. Ted said he has the necessary 14-guage wire and insulators.
The December Christmas party was deemed a success. During the party Ted auctioned off a hand-held transceiver and a Morse key. Thank you to all who prepared and brought food.
New Business:
Mark Larson, K7OWG passed in early January. Prior to his passing, he had expressed his desire to donate his gear to the club. Barbara Larson would like it to be removed from her residence. Once Ted hears from Barbara he will look for volunteers to help remove said gear. We discussed potential use of said gear for annual Field Day.
Selection of new officers:
Ted nominated Mike KF7STP to be president. Mike declared he would prefer to remain as treasurer. Ted then nominated Gary W7GFA as president. Gary declared he was content to remain as secretary and membership.
Ted stated he would remain as president for one more year. Joel Hinshaw stated he would serve as vice-president for one more year.
W4PJS repeater. It had been removed from the Grande Ronde Hospital due to interference from nearby electronics. Ted has looked into a new Yaesu model DR1X repeater. Reported cost to clubs is $500. It is a dual band. Graham has agreed to relinquish the 146.980 repeater and let the club take over responsibility of the new repeater, should we agree to purchase a new one. There was discussion on the qualities of the DR1X model. The intention is to put the new repeater in the Grande Ronde Hospital where the .980 repeater was previously located, and use the same frequency, 146.980. Ted will discuss that location with the hospital leadership for approval. Ted will research the paperwork requirements for the purchase at club price, what documentation we may have to provide to qualify for lower price. Mike KF7STP motioned that we pursue this potential purchase. We agreed to move fast as the reduced price is good until March 2015.
Field Day team will work on looking for possible sites for the June 27 & 28 Field Day.
May QSO party is 7 & 8 May 2015.
County Fair: Question was posed, are we interested in having a booth again at the Union County Fair. Mike volunteered to head it up. Gary expressed his favor of having a booth, but expressed concern of the costs involved and our limited budget. Graham will look into the liability insurance costs.
Club Breakfasts: We discussed and agreed to continue with them. Ted will schedule them and make sure that the Flying J is aware of our schedule.
Fox Hunts: Question arose about continuing interest. Discussed holding one or two Fox Hunts this year. We agreed to discuss further during our February meeting.
Club Picnics and Pot Lucks: We agreed to discuss during our February meeting.
Joel said he would send out reminders about our club breakfasts, but Ted said he would take care of that.
Dates of Club meetings. We discussed the need to change our by-laws to reflect that we will be meeting on the third Wednesday of each month rather than the fourth Thursday since the Fire Department has asked us to change due to their scheduling needs. Ted will work on those changes
Gary reported that he has submitted the Silent Key paperwork to the ARRL on the passing of Mark Larson K7OWG.
ARES Group. We need people to get involved. We have the Hardware and the Software in the Emergency Operations Center at the La Grande police station. It requires some training and more-so, dedication. This is an opportunity for us to provide the services that Amateur Radio is all about. There will be a training day in May, per David Jensen. Contact David or Ted if interested.
By the end of the meeting, 10 members has paid their 2015 dues.
The meeting adjourned at 2001.
Present at the meeting were
Gary Anger W7GFA
David Jensen W7DFJ
Ted Ivestor N7NSL
Joe Nolan KB7WDI
Larry Wilson W7IXZ
Graham Hicks W4PJS
Joel Hinshaw KD7JG
David Hoeflin W7EEX
Nancy Wilson W7IYA
Steve Ratzlaff AA7U
Marc Shaffer KC7NXX
Greg Walker KE7ZRV
Mike Orkott KF7STP
