Thank you for the report (thank Dave for me). I saw Ray Novak from Icom posting about it on facebook last year. It seems like a fun event. 73 Ria, N2RJ On Sat, 27 Jul 2019 at 21:22, Michel, Howard, WB2ITX (CEO) <wb2itx@arrl.org> wrote:
Dear Officers, Directors and Vice Directors,
An informal update from Bob NQ1R ... He's been in Oskosh all week ...
Traffic to the ARRL exhibit has been brisk all week. I’m supported by a fantastic team of volunteers… hams from throughout the Wisconsin Field Organization and even from around the country. We’ve already seen 400 ham-pilots visiting the booth...many members...and many more prospective hams. We have signed over 20 memberships to people who don’t even have a call sign yet!
The booth meets a strategic objective to develop interest in Amateur Radio from groups with likeminded interests. Director Kermit Carlson originally conceived an a ARRL exhibit at AirVenture. This is our second year here.
The exhibit has also increased the visibility of Amateur Radio and ARRL among the manufacturing community. National reps from Icom and Yaesu are here. Icom lent us a receiver to include in our display. Icom is also promoting the IC 7300 here...a very popular radio among new HF ops. They’d like to explore ways to support our exhibit in 2020.
An EAA Board member organized a radio construction project-building activity for youngsters attending the show (thousands). The crystal radio project was designed by a 21-year old RF engineer (his dad is a ham). The project involves component identification, assembly, soldering, coil-winding and tuning. The radio is initially tuned to pickup air traffic control, but it’s fun to see kids using the included tuning tool to see “what else I can pick up!” Many of the youth aviation projects include major corporate sponsors. ARRL has been invited to explore a sponsorship role for 2020. They’re already hanging our banner!
I’ve also used the opportunity to investigate resale opportunities. A major aviation publication seller may take-on our Ham Radio License Manual. It’s a natural fit.
Members and Life Members visiting the ARRL booth have given us high marks for this effort. I’m exhausted! It’s a full week of exhibiting 8-hours a day, and supporting the all-volunteer ARRL team. These member-volunteers are awesome, and have their sights set on growing Amateur Radio. It’s a great synergy between HQ staff and members-volunteers.
There are also 2 special event stations on the grounds, one organized by the Fox Cities ARC, and the other by Icom’s Ray Novak. Frankly, though, we see much more networking traffic through our exhibit.
I’ve been posting pics and videos to the ARRL Facebook page throughout the week. The experience is a great example of the work all ARRL members must support to increase Amateur Radio’s visibility. Other organizations exhibiting here include the National Park Service, all of the military branches, AARP, and many colleges and universities.
73 Howard, WB2ITX
-- Howard E. Michel, WB2ITX Chief Executive Officer ARRL, The National Association for Amateur Radio® 225 Main Street, Newington, CT 06111-1494 USA Telephone: +1 860-594-0404 email: hmichel@arrl.org
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