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The ARES E-Letter

May 17, 2017
Editor: Rick Palm, K1CE


Special 2017 Hamvention(R) Issue!

In This Issue:

 *  ARES(R) Members: Must See's, Must Do's at 2017 Hamvention(R) This Week
 *  Pennsylvania EMA Hosts Region 3, U.S. Army MARS Annual Conference
 *  Tribal Emergency Preparedness Conference held in Western Washington
    Section
 *  Red Cross Recognizes ARRL Sacramento Valley SEC
 *  Profiles in Public Service: Jim Pepper, W9PX, appointed Illinois State
    RACES Officer
 *  K1CE For a Final: Field Day 2017 Next Month


ARES Briefs, Links

Hamvention Organizers "Counting Down the Hours," Anticipating up to 35,000
Visitors (5/4/17); W5KUB Again to Offer Next Best Thing to Being at Hamvention
(5/4/17); Outer Banks Repeater Association Receives 2017 Governor's Volunteer
Service Award (5/1/17); FCC Personal Radio Service Revisions Will Affect GMRS,
FRS, CB, Other Part 95 Devices (4/28/17)


ARRL Represented at NVOAD Annual Conference in Houston

The 2017 Annual National VOAD Conference is underway in Houston, Texas, as this
 is written. ARRL is a NVOAD member organization, and ARRL Emergency
Preparedness Manager Mike Corey, KI1U, is currently representing the League in
Houston. Watch for conference summaries and news. NVOAD is an association of
organizations that mitigate and alleviate the impact of disasters, provides a
forum promoting cooperation, communication, coordination and collaboration; and
 fosters more effective delivery of services to communities affected by
disaster. Since its founding in 1970, National VOAD Member organizations have
worked tirelessly to assist communities affected by disasters and have grown to
 more than 100.

Among many presentations, Director of Individual Assistance Chris Smith, W4HMV,
 provided the FEMA update at the conference this week in Houston. The theme of
the conference is "Bridging the Gulf."



ARES(R) Members: Must See's, Must Do's at 2017 Hamvention(R) This Week

The venerable Hamvention(R), at the new location -- Greene County Fairgrounds
-- in Xenia, Ohio, is this week -- Friday, May 19, through Sunday, May 21. This
 year, Hamvention is the ARRL Ohio State Convention. Here is a guide for public
 event/emergency/disaster response communicators planning on attending. First,
check out the ARRL Expo, a must for any conventioneer. ARRL will have a huge
presence at Hamvention and welcomes all. ARRL Expo features a large store of
ARRL pubs and other items, and a fantastic array of exhibits. Download the ARRL
 Expo Exhibit and Activities Guide. Meet ARRL leadership and key staff
including ARRL Emergency Preparedness Manager Mike Corey, KI1U, who is
responsible for proposing, developing and administering ARRL emergency
preparedness, emergency and disaster response initiatives and related programs
at the national HQ level.


ARRL Public Service Communications Panel Discussion

To be held on Saturday afternoon at 1:45 to 3:00 in Room 4, the Public Service
Communications Panel Discussion is simply not to be missed. With a panel of
experts and pioneers in their respective nationally recognized programs and
organizations, moderated by ARRL Emergency Preparedness Manager Mike Corey,
KI1U, you'll have a chance to listen and ask questions involving contemporary,
critical public service communications issues with these leaders.

Panelists include Rob Macedo, KD1CY, VOIP WX Net and VOIP Hurricane Net; Paul
English, WD8DBY, US Army MARS; David Stapchuk, KD9DXM, US Air Force MARS; Bobby
 Graves, KB5HAV, Hurricane Watch Net; Bill Feist, WB8BZH, SATERN; and Ross
Merlin, WA2WDT, Department of Homeland Security, SHAred RESources (SHARES).


Mesh Presence

Next, enmesh yourself in the Mesh Networks presence - on-the-air, forum, booth,
 and mini-classes. This technology takes advantage of the amateur microwave
bands and the bandwidth that goes with them, for ultra high speed data and
applications. Hams are now building radio-based high speed digital mesh
networks low cost commercial hardware adapted for Amateur Radio use. Mesh
provides flexible, high speed wireless communications that can be adapted to
varying terrain types, can be rapidly deployed, are fun to build and use, and
are particularly well suited to the emergency/disaster response needs of many
served agencies. The Miami Valley Mesh Alliance (MVMA) has joined with the
Amateur Radio Emergency Data Network (AREDN) core technical team to provide the
 Mesh Network presence at Hamvention.

On the air, the local Mesh network will be found on Channel -2 at 10 MHz
bandwidth. The SSID is AREDN-10-v3. At the Mesh Networks Forum (Saturday at
1:30 PM in Forum Room 2), AREDN's Andre Hansen, K6AH, will discuss AREDN
capabilities, deployment and applications. Reps from MVMA and the AREDN Core
Team will host visitors at their Booth #1001, located in the extreme southwest
corner of Building 1.

The AREDN Core Team will present mini-classes at the booth. Topics include:

· Introduction to Mesh Technology

· Mesh Implementation Techniques

· Network Planning and Link Performance Estimation

· VOIP Applications for Rapid Deployment

· Mesh Network Applications for Disaster Response

· Network Performance Metrics and Tools

· How to "Un-Brick" a Mesh Node

· WinLink integration with Mesh

· Live streaming video cameras

· Using MeshChat

· How to Setup Node Location Data

· See booth for class schedule details.


SHARES, NWS, APRS, MARS, SATERN Forums and More

SHARES - Interoperable HF Emergency Communications: Friday, 9:15 to 10:15, Room
 2. Ross Merlin, WA2WDT, SHARES Program Manager, will moderate a forum on
SHARES (SHAred RESources), a Federal government HF radio program for backup
communications and interoperability among Federal agencies and
Federally-affiliated entities that have a need to send or receive national
security or emergency preparedness communications such as state agencies,
county emergency management agencies, and critical infrastructure/key resources
 providers (telecommunications, energy, healthcare, transportation, etc.). This
 session will include both an introduction to SHARES for potential users and an
 open forum for audience members to discuss program issues with the SHARES
Program Office staff. Merlin wrote the National Interoperability Field
Operations Guide (NIFOG), which is widely used by public safety and emergency
communications professionals across the country.

Also in Room 2, directly following the SHARES program, is the MARS forum,
moderated by Paul English, WD8DBY. The Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS)
is a Department of Defense (DOD) sponsored program implemented by the Army and
the Air Force that trains amateur operators to provide contingency High
Frequency (HF) communications support for DOD. MARS volunteers are trained on
unique military messaging formats and use Military Standard digital protocols
as well as digital encryption on DOD assigned HF frequencies. This forum will
feature presentations from both the Army and Air Force MARS program leaders and
 may include other technical presentations relevant to this unique DOD support
mission. This forum is open to all MARS members as well as amateurs who are
interested in supporting the MARS mission. Presentations will be given by Paul
English, WD8DBY, Army MARS Program Manager, and Dave Stapchuk, KD9DXM, Chief
Air Force MARS.

The APRS Forum will be held in Room 1 from 10:45 to 11:45, moderated by APRS
inventor/developer Bob Bruninga, WB4APR. APRS continues to expand into more
areas. Bruninga will give an update on the state of APRS and the opportunities
for APRS via the several amateur satellites now including worldwide coverage
via three geostationary birds receivable with a SDR dongle and Raspberry pi
kit.

At 1:15, in Room 1, John Peterson of the US Department of Homeland Security
(DHS) -- Office of Emergency Communications (OEC) will discuss communications
training and issues DHS- OEC forum, which will be of interest to auxiliary
emergency communicators who volunteer to provide backup communications support
for public safety and emergency response agencies. Typically they are Amateur
Radio communicators from groups such as MARS, ARES, RACES, SATERN and others.
They are routinely used by event planners and emergency managers at all levels
of government. Today nearly all the States/territories have incorporated some
level of participation by amateur auxiliary communication operators into their
communications interoperability plans. Talk with the DHS Communications Unit
(COMU) subject matter experts and learn about the nationally recognized
NIMS/ICS compliant AUXCOMM workshop and with senior level emergency
communications experts who have incorporated this training in recent national
level disasters. This forum will also include discussion of the AUXCOMM course
and the AUXCOMM Field Operations Guide (AUXFOG); information on OEC's
Interoperable Communications Technical Assistance Program; how amateurs are
incorporated into the National Emergency Communications Plan (NECP);
information on how you can become qualified to teach the OEC AUXCOMM course for
 your state; the latest changes expected for Communications Unit (COMU)
training, which includes Communications Leader (COML), Communications
Technician (COMT), instructor courses for COML/COMT, AUXCOMM, Incident
Communications Manager, Incident Tactical Dispatcher and the RADO courses.

At 1:30 in Room 2, Brandon Peloquin, Warning Coordination Meteorologist,
National Weather Service of Wilmington, Ohio, will present the NWS Forum.
Topic: Working With Amateur Radio To Save Lives During Severe Weather. NOAA's
Weather-Ready Nation initiative is about building community resilience in the
face of increasing vulnerability to extreme weather and water events. To
achieve this, the National Weather Service (NWS) strives to develop and
strengthen partnerships with those who contribute to this initiative. This
presentation will describe the partnership between Amateur Radio operators and
the NWS and how they work together to help communities be better prepared for
severe weather.

On Saturday, at 9:15 in Room 3, moderator Bill Feist, WB8BZH, will discuss
SATERN in The 21st Century: The National SATERN Committee will discuss the new
Strategic Plan for SATERN approved by The Salvation Army in 2016. This will
include a discussion of the goals SATERN is setting for itself over the next
several years and the results of the SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses,
Opportunities, Threats) Analysis upon which those goals are based.


Disaster Response Communications In Asia

Special Achievement winner S. Ram Mohan, VU2MYH, will discuss disaster systems
and deployments in Asia. Ram Mohan is the Executive Vice Chairman and Director,
 National Institute of Amateur Radio, Hyderabad, India. As Chief Investigator
for the Indian government's Department of Information Technology, he
implemented programs for digital connectivity to urban/rural/remote areas
through Amateur Radio, studied propagation in coastal areas and developed an
advanced digital Amateur Radio communication network. He led team members on
numerous disaster deployments including the Nepal Earthquake 2015, Cyclone Hud
2014, Uttarakhand Floods 2013, West Bengal 'Ayla' Cyclone 2009, Indian Ocean
Tsunami 2004, Gujarat earthquake 2001, and the Orissa Super Cyclone 1999.
Attend this forum at 10:30 in Room 3, on Sunday morning.

Enjoy Hamvention! (Information for this article, and further information on
Hamvention forums for this year can be found here. When arriving at Hamvention,
 be sure to check for any changes/additions to the forum schedule.)



Pennsylvania EMA Hosts Region 3, U.S. Army MARS Annual Conference

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania -- Springtime allows us to shake the winter
hibernation and service the radio shack to ensure all systems are good to go.
If you are a MARS operator, that also includes gleaning the latest updates on
Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS) operations. U.S. Army and U.S. Air Force
 MARS operators from Region 3, composed of the states of Delaware, Maryland,
Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia, gathered
for the Region 3, Army MARS annual conference April 6-8, 2017. The event was
hosted by the Pennsylvania Army MARS staff in cooperation with the Pennsylvania
 Emergency Management Agency (PEMA). As MARS nears 100 years of service to the
country, the jam packed conference showcased the dramatic evolution of
resources available to support today's volunteer MARS operator to meet the
mission of providing contingency and emergency communications for the
Department of Defense (DOD) and federal and civil authorities.

The conference was opened by Travis Best, the U.S. Army MARS Pennsylvania State
 Director, and partners from PEMA, the facility host. Travis shared the
outstanding relationship and trust developed between PEMA and the Pennsylvania
MARS operators. This has allowed MARS to establish a state of the art Amateur
Radio operating station in cooperation with the PEMA Auxiliary Communication
Services (ACS) inside the PEMA Commonwealth Response Coordination Center
(CRCC). Following, the U.S. Army MARS, Region 3 Director, provided a very
interesting keynote briefing on the state of MARS
membership in Region 3, which has remained reasonably steady over the last
three years.

The group was joined on the first day via video teleconference by the U.S. Army
 MARS Program Manager Paul English, WD8DBY, who praised the continued service
and dedication of the region MARS membership, and provided news and updates
from Army MARS HQ and the U.S. Army NETCOM Command, which is Army MARS' higher
command. The conference was highlighted by the educational presentations on the
 latest Army MARS operating tools and software packages.

Across the region, operators dedicate thousands of volunteer man-hours annually
 to the mission of supporting our nation, the Department of Defense, and the
armed services with two contingency emergency communication support systems
designed to operate in a cyber denied or impaired environment.

Membership is critical to MARS success. Losing members, especially those that
have become close friends and like family over the years, is tough. During the
conference, attendees shared a solemn and reverent moment by Rendering Bell
Honors in memory of the six region members that became silent keys (SK) over
the past year. The conference was full of lighter moments as the attendees
shared in various social activities to include the Saturday evening group
dinner. The fairly new PEMA facility was an accommodating facility for this
event and PEMA has already graciously extended an invitation for the region
membership to return for next year's conference planned for April 6-8, 2018.



Tribal Emergency Preparedness Conference held in Western Washington Section

On May 1-3, 2017, the Suquamish tribe hosted the 14th Annual Regional Joint
Tribal Emergency Preparedness Conference at their Port Madison Indian
Reservation overlooking dxE·sÉ?qI?E·É?b ("place of the clear salt water" in the
 Southern Lushootseed language) at Agate Pass in Puget Sound, Washington. Radio
 amateurs from Washington, Oregon, California, and Arizona all contributed to
the success of this conference.

The Kitsap County (Washington) ARES/RACES/ACS group set up a radio station and
display tables in the wide hallway outside the conference rooms, and many
tribal emergency management leaders stopped by for information, to chat about
creating a stronger Amateur Radio presence within their tribes, and to watch
the station in operation. Mike Montfort, KB?SVF, Kitsap County EC, termed his
group's participation as "a fantastic opportunity" to build relationships with
his neighbors. At the request of Chris Morganroth IV, KI7EGI, Quileute Nation
Fire Chief, Montfort, along with Dan Ransom, K7MM, will soon be conducting a
Technician license class for Quileute tribal members.

On Monday, two hams gave talks at the conference general session. Suzanne
Everson, KI7EGE, Regional Emergency Management Specialist at Region 10
Administration for Children and Families, co-presented "Administration for
Children and Families, How We Can Work With You." Lou Schmitz, KE7RYR, American
 Indian Health Commission, presented "Emergency Preparedness Toolkit."

On Tuesday morning, three hams gave talks at the conference general session.
Jim Sande, KG7NRF, National Tribal Emergency Management Education Sub-Committee
 Chair, co-presented "Pursuing ongoing Education in Emergency Management."
Nathan Nixon, N7NAN, President of the National Tribal Amateur Radio Association
 and Training Coordinator for the Inter-Tribal Council of Arizona, spoke about
the "Indian Country Intelligence Network." Tracy Depew, KI7EGC, Director of
Emergency Management, Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians, presented
"FEMA HMA External Stakeholder Working Group and PDM in Indian Country."

On Tuesday afternoon, three hams gave talks during the breakout sessions. Bart
Kus, AE7SJ, founder and lead developer of HamWAN, spoke about the operational
high speed digital network designed for maximum resiliency and survivability,
which operates on amateur service microwave frequencies and allows for
continuous exchange of data between key emergency management facilities
throughout the Puget Sound region. Steve Aberle, WA7PTM, Assistant. State RACES
 Officer, gave a talk titled "ESF #2 (Communications) Support for ESF #6 (Mass
Care) and ESF #8 (Public Health)," which included a practicum in message
receiving for the participants. Adam Geisler, KJ6YHN, Regional Tribal
Government Liaison, FirstNet, co-hosted "First Net Presentation, Listening
Session and FirstNet Surveys."

On Wednesday morning, Suzanne Everson, KI7EGE, gave a breakout session talk
titled "Children and Youth Task Forces," and Lynda Zambrano, KE7RWG, Executive
Director of the Northwest Tribal Emergency Management Council (NWTEMC),
facilitated an open panel discussion between attendees and the NWTEMC Board of
Directors. Lynda reported that many of the participants in the conference had
made "best tribal emergency preparedness conference ever" comments to her.



Wedding Ring CW Key

When activating a demonstration station at these conferences, the question that
 always comes up is "what was your furthest contact?" Up until shortly before
being asked, the answer would have been "Florida." However, after being asked,
Dan, K7MM, tuned to 20-meter CW and heard some European DX coming in fairly
strong. But, none of the hams at the conference had a straight key or a bug
with them. Monte Simpson, AF7PQ, ARRL Western Washington Section Manager,
commented that he had once seen a Coast Guard radio operator use a pie tin with
 a short piece of metal as a makeshift key. Dan, K7MM, then plugged an
unterminated cable into the key jack on the radio and connected one lead to his
 knife and one to his wedding ring. He then used his free hand to tap his
wedding ring against the knife, and the "wedding ring CW key" was born. With
this, and to the amazement of all, Dan managed to make a QSO with RU3XL in
Belgorod, Russia. This excellent example of improvising very much impressed the
 tribal leaders.

The success of this conference would not have been possible without the
outstanding efforts by the Kitsap County ARES/RACES/ACS members. -- Steve
Aberle, WA7PTM, Assistant State RACES Officer (Tribal Liaison), Washington
State



Red Cross Recognizes ARRL Sacramento Valley SEC

ARRL Sacramento Valley Section News, April 29, 2017 -- ARRL Sacramento Valley
Section Emergency Coordinator Greg Kruckewitt, KG6SJT, has been instrumental in
 the development of flmsg HTML[KG6SJT_Red_Cross.jpg] custom templates of Red
Cross disaster forms. These templates used with flmsg optimize disaster
messaging communications over data circuits by removing form variable data,
i.e., the message itself, from the overall form. Saved to a small object file,
the message can then be moved efficiently over an HF, VHF, or UHF data circuit.

During the April 2017 Red Cross Disaster Leadership Council meeting, Mr. Robin
Friedman, Red Cross Regional Disaster Program Officer, presented Greg with a
Certificate of Appreciation inscribed:

Greg Kruckewitt

Award for Excellence in Service to the American Red Cross Gold Country Region

In recognition of your outstanding contributions for your many hours of effort
developing Red Cross disaster forms templates suitable for transmission over
digital radio circuits. Your contributions reflect highly on the Red Cross
mission and on the partnership between the American Red Cross and the American
Radio Relay League.

__________________


Profiles in Public Service: Jim Pepper, W9PX, appointed Illinois State RACES
Officer

Jim Pepper, W9PX, was recently appointed as the new Illinois State RACES
Officer and AUXCOMM Coordinator by Illinois Emergency Management Agency
Director James Joseph. After working as a chemist after college, Pepper went to
 work in the two-way radio industry in 1981. In 1988, he started a career with
the Illinois State Police Communications Bureau, where he currently serves as
the Radio Network Manager for the northern third of Illinois. In this position,
 he is the de facto COML for the Illinois State Police. He holds both General
Radiotelephone and Second Class Radiotelegraph licenses, as well as APCO and
NABER certifications. He was part of the original Starcom design team, when it
began as simply a replacement for the State Police Low Band radio system.
Pepper is a state-recognized COML and COML Instructor, as well as AUXCOMM
Instructor, and earned his Illinois Professional Emergency Manager (IPEM)
recognition in 2012. Pepper has served in numerous public service posts:
firefighter/paramedic for the Rock Falls Fire Department, adjunct professor in
the Electronics Department, Sauk Valley Community College, and Division
Commander in the US Coast Guard Auxiliary. He has served as District Chairman
and Council Board Member with the Boy Scouts of America.

Pepper was licensed as a Technician in 1976 as a member of the Sterling High
School Radio Club. He quickly upgraded to Amateur Extra class and was issued
call sign W9PX in 1978. He has been active for many years in CW, fox hunting,
field ops, and Civil Defense. More recently, he has been active on SSB, PSK31,
and learning CAP and MARS procedures. Pepper is an ARRL Official Emergency
Station (OES), and according to Illinois Section Manager Ron Morgan, AD9I, "Jim
 continues to be an asset to the amateur community and will provide insight and
 leadership between the various governmental agencies." - Illinois Section News



K1CE For a Final: Field Day 2017 Next Month

I hope to work many of you on Field Day next month. Along with Team K1CE member
 Eliot Mayer, W1MJ, longtime friend and Field Day fanatic, we will be operating
 on emergency power all weekend, from the Three Rivers (Suwannee river, Santa
Fe river and Ichetucknee river) area in rural northern Florida. Look for us on
the ARRL Field Day locator! Have a great Field Day, one of the best major
operating events that can simulate field conditions in a disaster area. It's
also just plain fun!

_____________


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