Welcome
to the
Welcome
to the
Ohio Section
Actually you are already
a member if you live in Ohio, hold a Federal Amateur Radio license and are a
member of the American Radio Relay League. We ask you to not only understand
what the Ohio Section is but to participate where you can. This participation is
the basis of ARRL in Ohio and you can be an active part of it.
First there are 71 Sections in the United States and the Ohio Section
is the largest both in number of hams and number of ARRL members. Basically this
is because Ohio is the largest state in the US not partitioned. Every state
bigger than Ohio has from two to nine (California) sections in it. Here are some
areas you can participate and remember every one listed here is a volunteer
dedicated to Ham Radio and the American Radio Relay League.
Emergency
Communications (ARES):
Our most popular appointment is those who serve the Amateur Radio
Emergency Service. Each of our 88 counties have an Emergency Coordinator
appointed to operate ARES programs in that county. The Section Emergency
Coordinator (SEC) runs this program.
Message
Handling:
Traffic Nets Even in the days of E-mail and other electronic means of
communication, the National Traffic System (sending messages by radio) continues
to operate. Ohio has one statewide phone net - the Ohio Single-Side Band Net
(OSSBN) and three CW statewide nets. These are listed in each month's edition of
Section News. In addition all our major metropolitan areas have nets on VHF and
UHF repeaters. Ohio's traffic nets are among the best in the US.
Newsletters:
Public relations First rule of the Public Relations Manuel is to have
our own people know what is going on. Club newsletters are a key here. Public
Information Officers not only are in charge of newsletters but also informing
public media outlets about ham radio news. The Public Information Coordinator (PIC)
runs this program.
Official
Observers:
The Official Observers (Amateur Auxiliary) is Ohio's fastest growing
program. Official Observers are hams to monitor frequencies (HF and VHF/UHF
repeaters) to advise hams of poor operating practices and write "Good Guy
Reports" to outstanding radio operators where they find them. The Official
Observer Coordinator (OOC) runs this program.
Technical
Specialists:
Hams in this program are electronic specialists who stand ready to
assist hams and non-hams when thorny interference problems arise. The Technical
Coordinator (TC) runs this program.
Government Liaisons:
With a myriad of city councils, county commissions, boards of zoning
appeals and school boards across Ohio, Local Government Liaisons monitor the
activities of these civic boards to see if any actions affect ham radio
directly. The State Government Liaison (SGL) operates this program and
officially monitors the Ohio Legislature, Governor and State Supreme Court.
Affiliated Clubs:
Basically for qualified ham radio clubs who obtain and maintain
Special Service Club and/or Affiliated Club status in the ARRL. The Affiliated
Clubs Coordinator (ACC) runs this program.
The above sketches are just some of what's happening in the Ohio
Section. For more information on any ARRL program, please contact the Ohio
Section person running that program. You'll find these dedicated hams in the
Ohio Section Cabinet listing. Beside these programs, the Ohio Section has three
jewels which distinguishes it from the other 70 Sections. We offer the
Ohio Section Journal,
a 12 to 16 page quarterly publication which explains current Section activities;
an Annual Ohio Ham
Radio Newsletter Competition
to honor excellence in ham radio reporting and the annual
Ohio Section Conference
(usually in September) where Ohio hams holding appointments can gather and
exchange ideas for improving our work. No other section in the United States
does even two of these things.
The Ohio Section also features Six Assistant Section Managers. One
from each of the five areas of Ohio - Northwest Ohio, Northeast Ohio, Central
Ohio, Southwest Ohio, Southeast Ohio and the Webmaster- to insure all parts of our large and
diverse state are represented.
Thank you for being a part of the ARRL's biggest and finest Section.
Frank Piper, KI8GW Ohio Section Manager
updated: 08/06/09