NEW RINGGOLD - On-air demonstrations are on tap for members of the Schuylkill Amateur Repeater Association as they gear up to participate in the 82nd Amateur Radio Field Day this weekend at the West Penn Archery Club.
The field day, a 24-hour event, begins at 2 p.m. Saturday and ends at the same time Sunday. The event is open to the public.
During Field Day, amateur radio operators will hold demonstrations, give talks to community groups and take part in other activities to raise awareness about amateur radio, according to Jim Munley, SARA secretary and radio operator. Field Day is sponsored by the American Radio Relay League, the national association for amateur radio. During the annual event, thousands of fellow amateur radio operators and clubs will be setting up radio stations in parks, community centers and other remote locations for the purpose of gaining proficiency in operating under austere conditions should an emergency occur.
"Radio operators will be making contacts with stations throughout the United States and North America," Munley said. "We're going have three stations going. We'll have the GOTA station, which stands for 'Get On The Air,' we'll have the Morse code station and the phone station, which is voice."
GOTA allows anyone from the public to participate by talking on a ham radio.
Munley said this year's event is dedicated to late SARA member Robert V. "Dominic" Tobin, Cumbola, who passed away at 76 on May 11.
"He was a very active member. He had no call sign, but he did a lot for the club, so we decided to dedicate this field day in honor of him," Munley said.
This year marks the 100th anniversary of the Advancing the Art and Science of Radio, Munley said. Founded in 1914, ARRL is the national association for amateur radio in America. Today, with more than 160,000 members, ARRL is the largest organization of radio amateurs in the world.
Munley said the 24-hour event is also a competition among ham radio clubs around the country, with each trying to contact as many different stations as possible. Invitations to attend have been sent to the Schuylkill County commissioners, county emergency management coordinator John Matz, county Coroner Dr. David Moylan and state Rep. Neal P. Goodman, D-123.
Munley said directions to the archery club, 147 Archery Club Road, New Ringgold, can be found at the SARA website, www.w3sc.org.
The Schuylkill Amateur Repeater Association was organized on March 5, 1975. Meetings are held at 8 p.m. on the second Friday of the month at Schuylkill Medical Center-South Jackson Street. To get there, go into the main entrance and go straight back to conference room.
The meetings are open to all who are interested in amateur radio.