LARC will operate the W4S Special Event Station again this year at the Sun n Fun Aerospace Expo. The station will be located in the corner of the Emil Buehler hangar (just off the right wing-tip of the 727 static display). Our participation in the event will run from March 28 until April 1st.

More info at: https://flysnf.org

We plan to operate primarily on 20 and 40 meters, but may add 17 and 10 if propagation permits. We will try to monitor the K4LKL repeater, but this is an airshow, so be patient if we are slow to answer.

The schedule and roster of operators is full at this point, but please feel free to drop by the station, sign the guest log and visit for a while.

We had a very good turn out, the weather was great and everyone had a good time. Amateur radio was introduced to multiple attendees and their families and club members enjoyed the “old Florida” atmosphere and time to visit with each other.

Heritage Day – March 18, 2023

8950 N Campbell Road, Lakeland, Florida

Join the Lakeland Amateur Radio Club at Heritage Park for live on-the-air demonstrations of amateur radio’s versatility and usefulness for everyone.

LARC will hold our general membership meeting via Zoom at 7 PM on Monday, August 10th, the second Monday of the month.

For those familiar with the Zoom platform, this will be a piece of cake. If you have not used Zoom for meetings before, it is not too complicated, provided you follow a few basic guidelines. We held our July meeting this way and had 26 participants. Hopefully, a few more will decide to join us this month.

I will post in Meeting ID and passcode on the blog and email it to the general membership this weekend, so be watching for that information.

We plan to begin the meeting at 1900 hrs, as we normally do, but we will have the Zoom meeting set up 20-30 minutes in advance so you can get familiar with checking in and participating in the meeting.

Mike, N6MRS

Field Day is upon us and will differ greatly from past Field Days for the Lakeland Amateur Radio Club. Please check out the information here on the blog for details on how to participate.

After more years than he would care to remember, Bill Johnson has decided to step down from his long-held position as Secretary of the Lakeland Amateur Radio Club. He served with a consistently upbeat and “can do” attitude and was always willing to take on the myriad of thankless tasks the club required.

In addition to his duties as Secretary, he managed the LARC blog, kept track of years of the club’s pictures, archives and paraphernalia, was the de facto club photographer and provided limitless support for those responsible for other club functions.

Bill was always the “embedded walker” at the March for Babies and Wounded Warrior events, often making multiple loops around Lake Hollingsworth to provide on scene radio contact.

At the meeting June 1, the Board of Directors decided that our monthly meetings would resume on July 13^th – the second Monday. Shortly thereafter, in response to spikes in new cases of the COVID-19 virus here in Polk County and in concern for their congregation, Parkview Baptist Church decided to delay the reopening of their facilities until August. We are currently trying to determine the best course of action regarding the July LARC meeting: meet outdoors, find a different indoor venue, or simply wait until August to begin meeting again. We are open to any and all suggestions. Please read your email and check the blog frequently.

Wish I had better news and more detailed information. At least the sun managed to produce a few sunspots for us. 73

Mike Shreve, President, Lakeland Amateur Radio Club

The West Central Florida Experimenter Spring 2020 issue is available for downloading. This edition includes an excellent article by LARC’s own Buddy Morgan, WB4OMG, on the current status of FT8 on 2 meters and higher bands.

You can find a link to the WCF Experimenter and other useful information on the WCF website: http://arrlwcf.org/

or you can download this and other WCF Experimenter issues at:

http://arrlwcf.org/home/the-wcf-experimenter-technical-newsletter/

Long time LARC member Carl Johnson, has passed away. His obituary from Sunday’s Ledger is found below:

HENDERSONVILLE, TN. – Carl T. Johnson, age 84, of Hendersonville, TN and formerly of Auburndale, FL, passed away peacefully on May 2, 2020.

Carl was born on January 21, 1936 in Sturgis, Michigan to the late Carl and Geraldine Johnson.

Carl was a proud veteran of the United States Coast Guard, retiring at the rank of Lt. Commander with 25 years of service. Following his military service he continued his career as a systems engineer with Northrup Grumman for 20 years. He enjoyed amateur radio, golf, marksmanship, sailing, and fishing.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by his brother, Neal Johnson. He is survived by his wife, Ann Johnson; sons, Todd Johnson (Kimberly) of Hendersonville, TN and Andrew Johnson of Bowie, MD; 8 grandchildren, 6 great grandchildren; siblings, Hugh Johnson and Kathi Sonetz.

In accordance with his wishes, Mr. Johnson was cremated and there will be a memorial Mass held at a later date. Arrangements Entrusted to: Sumner Funeral & Cremation, Gallatin, TN (615) 452-9059 www.sumnerfuneral. com