IN-Newsletter Vol. 36, No. 36 September 18, 2013 -- Covers the period September 8-14. Upcoming Meetings and Events Section Managers' Workshop September 20-22 - ARRL HQ Executive Committee: October 5 @ 8:30am - Denver, CO Director/Vice Director Elections November 15 LoTW Study Committee November 15 @ 9:00am in Newington, CT Administration & Finance Committee November 16 @ 8:30am in Newington, CT Media & Public Relations Reported by Sean Kutzko, KX9X I worked closely to support and promote the Colorado ARES team in their support efforts on the drastic flooding in Colorado. I was also in constant communication with CO Section Manager Jack Ciaccia, WM0G, concerning their efforts in Boulder County. Sean generated press releases and made cold calls to news directors at the national level and in Denver, Boulder, Fort Collins and Greeley, CO. This resulted in coverage on NBC Nightly News, an in-depth article in the Denver Post, and promise of coverage on ABC. I continue to work on leads for extended coverage of Amateur Radio's support role in the Colorado flooding and has calls out to several media outlets, including National Public Radio. Myself, Editor Steve Ford and QST Managing Editor Becky Schoenfeld have agreed to meet on a monthly basis to unite the PR and Editorial departments and present a unified message throughout ARRL's media. Steve Ford and I agreed that I should take over the production and reading of ARRL Audio News. This will begin on September 20. I have asked ARRL Members to send in a short audio clip identifying themselves and their city/state, along with the tag, " and you're listening to ARRL Audio News." I have also received nearly two dozen audio tags since the initial request. PR has begun more active use of social media, posting several stories of interest from both ARRL and non-ARRL sources to the ARRL Facebook page and Twitter account. Traffic on our social media outlets is increasing slowly as a result, and I plan a radical increase in the role social media will play in PR efforts. I also worked on two articles for the December 2013 QST: the 2012 Field Day results and an article on the role of PIOs during emergencies. Allen Pitts continued work on the Centennial video and timeline projects. Lab Reported by Ed Hare, W1RFI Product Review Bob Allison tested a second unit of a modern HF transceiver. The original unit tested had higher than expected transmit IMD on one of the HF Amateur Bands. The manufacturer was notified and after more information was exchanged, a modification to the transmit filter board was made by the manufacturer and performance was greatly improved. This is another good example of ARRL Laboratory measurements assisting the manufacturer with the end results being an improved product. Testing continues of a small, travel type antenna tuner. QST Bob continues to assist Andy Buckler, K2OP, with the bandpass filter design for his homebrew, high gain RF power amplifier. This particular project will result in a fine article for QST and perhaps the Handbook since the amplifier uses the most modern components available. Web Mike Gruber helped Lori Kosior make some much needed updates and revisions to the RFI Web pages, specifically the automotive page. TIS Mike Gruber assisted a children's book author, Dori Butler, develop the story for an upcoming book. It is intended for kids ages 6-9 and will be number four in a series that will be published by Penguin next year and the year after. Dori said she wanted to write a fun story for kids but one that is also realistic should a ham read it. The book series involves kid detectives solving mysteries but always have a logical explanation. She didn't know any hams personally to ask so contacted the ARRL. Since Dori's questions involved RFI to consumer electronic devices, Debra Johnson referred her to me. Dori also commented that research for this book has renewed her interest in ham radio. Her father was a ham, and when she was 12, she could copy code at 13 wpm. She even has his old radio because she likes to listen to it. Despite her dad's encouragement, she never took the novice test because she was afraid of the theory. Mike provided contact information for a local club that offers classes in Amateur Radio. USTTI Bob Allison ordered receiver kits for the USTTI kit building class next month. Each year, the ARRL Laboratory teaches foreign radio administrators how to solder, use small hand tools and follow written instructions. While this class may seem intimidating at first, each student's confidence grows with every solder connection made. By the end of the class, each student understands the value Amateur Radio can add to their country as each Amateur is a skilled individual. Sales and Marketing Reported by Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R A total of 3,670 calls were received by the Sales and Marketing Department in August. In August, we processed 18 paid-in-full Life Memberships and 13 Life Membership pledges. Payment reminders to members making quarterly Life Membership payments were mailed out on September 5. There are 315 members making payments toward Life Membership. Yvette Vinci prepared the email notification for the October 2013 digital edition of QST, distributed to ARRL members on Friday, September 13. The distribution list included 113,003 members. Pre-orders from individuals for the ARRL Centennial Edition Handbook have topped 2,500 copies. The first batch of commemorative hardcover editions, personalized with names and call signs, will be sent to the printer on Friday, September 20. Those books will be fulfilled by mid-October, though we will continue to take orders for personalized books throughout the next months, or while supplies last. A large membership campaign-the first since before summer-is beginning to reach mailboxes. Summary of warehouse fulfillment activity (reported by Steve Capodicasa): Week of Packages fulfilled Member Premiums 9/3/2013 613 285 9/9/2013 543 185 Membership & Volunteer Programs Reported by Dave Patton, NN1N DXCC Paper/Fieldcheck Processing Time 2 Weeks Logbook Processing Time 3-5 Business Days W1AW Joe processed two Qualifying Run certificates. He also processed regular QSL card requests. Joe began repairing HPM's rotary spark-gap transmitter - Old Betsy - for it to be functional during the ARRL Centennial celebration. He also worked the early afternoon/night shift on Friday for the vacationing Scott Gee. Field Organization/Public Service Team Leona Adams received a nominating petition for Randall Smith, KI4OAS, of Gadsden, Tennessee, to run for Section Manager for the next term of office beginning January 1. Now that the September 6 deadline for nominating petitions has passed, Tennessee will have the only Section Manager election this fall. Randall Smith, KI4OAS, and incumbent Tennessee Section Manager Keith Miller, N9DGK, are the candidates. Western Massachusetts Section Manager Ed Emco, W1KT, was also nominated to run for a new term of office this past week. Since he was the only nominee, Ed will begin a new term of office on January 1. The following incumbent Section Managers have previously submitted their nominating petitions and they, too, were the only nominees in their respective sections. They will also begin new terms of office on January 1. David Drummond, W4MD, Alabama; Jim Larsen, AL7FS, Alaska; Jim Latham, AF6AQ, East Bay; Ron Cowan, KBØDTI, Kansas; Larry Camp, WB8R, Michigan; Bill Kauffman, W5YEJ, New Mexico; Robert Griffin, K6YR, Santa Barbara. There were no nominees received from Delaware. Section Manager candidates in Delaware will be solicited again starting in January QST. Radio amateurs from Ohio and Michigan completed requirements to become Official Observers this past week. Chuck Skolaut received a report of an apparently uncertified power amplifier for the medical field being sold that operates very close to Amateur Radio frequencies. The information was forwarded to the FCC. Chuck also received an updated report on the status of AM signals being monitored on 3875 kHz. An intruder reported on 14321 kHz was forwarded to our Intruder Watch monitors. The report of a disgraceful email sent by someone claiming to be an OO was investigated and has been resolved. Sincerely Compiled by, Lisa Kustosik, KA1UFZ Assistant to the CEO Hamfest/Member Contact/ARRL Representative/Meetings/Vacations All Staff 11/28-11/29 Holiday Steve Capodicasa 11/25-11/27 PTO Joe Carcia 9/27 PTO `` 10/14 PTO Scott Gee 10/4-10/7 PTO `` 11/11 PTO Mike Gruber 9/30-10/4 PTO Harold Kramer 9/23 PTO Zack Lau 9/23-9/27 PTO Diane Petrilli 9/20-9/30 PTO Dave Sumner 9/20-9/28 IARU Region 2 Conference, Cancun, Mexico
