08/24/2026
ARRL Indiana Section News for the week of August 24, 2026
== New Affiliated Club Coordinator ==
Let's welcome Brent Walls N9BA as Indiana Section's new Affiliated Club Coordinator! Brent's specific role will be to support ARRL-affiliated clubs, but he will also be taking on the broader mission of helping to strengthen all amateur radio clubs across Indiana, regardless of affiliation. Over the coming months, Brent hopes to learn more about clubs throughout the section, attend meetings and events when possible, and better understand both the successes and challenges facing amateur radio organizations today.
One of Brent's immediate tasks will be to help affiliated clubs update their records in the ARRL Affiliated Club database (https://www.arrl.org/find-a-club). This is a great tool that amateur radio operators can use to find your club, so it's important that the information be accurate.
You can reach Brent at [email protected].
== SKYWARN and ARES ==
There appears to be a misconception regarding the relationship between SKYWARN and ARES. To be plain, ARES and SKYWARN are separate programs, though many volunteers participate in both.
SKYWARN was established by the National Weather Service in the 1970s to gather critical weather data. Because the NWS owns the program, it establishes all standards for training, qualification, and reporting. Participation is open to anyone interested in public service—including public safety personnel, utility workers, and private citizens—and is not exclusive to amateur radio operators.
Amateur radio operators acting as severe weather spotters should align their activities with NWS requirements. Ultimately, NWS is the primary customer for severe weather reports, and our mission should be to deliver the information they require.
Most NWS offices have severe weather reporting info on their websites.
== Let Congress know how you feel ==
You can ask your Congressional representatives to support S.459 and H.R.1094 by pointing your browser to https://send-a-letter.org/hoa/, enter your amateur radio callsign, and click the "Send My Letters" button. The form will fill in your address information from the FCC license database and use your ZIP Code to determine the correct Senate and House members. That's all there is to it.
== Friends we'll miss ==
Ronald A. Showalter Jr. KA9EEA of Richmond
Peter F. Shaw KB9ZRV of South Bend
== Question of the Week ==
Last week's question of the week (with the answer indicated):
T1A01 Which of the following is part of the Basis and Purpose of the Amateur Radio Service?
A. Providing personal radio communications for as many citizens as possible
B. Providing communications for international contesting
>>C. Advancing skills in the technical and communication phases of the radio art
D. All these choices are correct
This week's question from the Technician question pool:
T1B01 Which of the following frequency ranges are available for phone operation by Technician licensees?
A. 28.050 MHz to 28.150 MHz
B. 28.100 MHz to 28.300 MHz
C. 28.300 MHz to 28.500 MHz
D. 28.500 MHz to 28.600 MHz
Try to answer the question without consulting any reference materials. I'll give the answer next week.
== Upcoming Indiana Hamfests ==
Sep 12, MARC Tailgate Hamfest, IDNR Parking Lot, 7970 S. Rowe St., Edinburgh, Public Contact: Jim Adams KB9JMU, Phone: 317-499-5451, Email: [email protected]
Sep 26 (rescheduled from Aug 15), ARANCI Hamfest, Christ Presbyterian Church, 7416 E. 109th Ave., Winfield, Public Contact: Michael Swiader KA9E, Phone: 815-409-5070, Email: [email protected]
Oct 3, Shelbyville Tailgate, Shelby County Fairgrounds, 500 Frank St, Shelbyville, Public Contact: John Walker K9SVL, Phone: 317-402-5000, Email: [email protected]
== ARRL Podcasts ==
ARRL Audio News ARRL Audio News is a summary of the week's top news stories in the world of amateur radio and ARRL. Available every Friday. http://www.arrl.org/arrl-audio-news
ARRL On The Air Podcast discusses topics covered in the current issue of On The Air. http://www.arrl.org/on-the-air-podcast
That's all for this week. As always, if you have a question or concern, please contact me.
Bob Burns AK9R
ARRL Indiana Section Manager
PO Box 808
Brownsburg IN 46112
email [email protected]
phone 317-520-1188
Winlink AK9R
