March of Dimes – March for Babies 2022 – Lakeland March – Saturday, April 30 at Lake Hollingsworth

LARC has, once again this year, been chosen to provide communication support for the Lakeland portion of this national event. Volunteer Radio Operators are needed from 7:30 AM until approximately 10:30 AM.

Please bring your HT. We will be using the LARC repeater at 146.685 PL 127.3. The event will once again be held at the First Presbyterian Church  175 Lake Hollingsworth Dr, Lakeland, FL 33801

We need a minimum of 10 volunteers to fulfill the needs of the event. All LARC club members are welcome. 

Please email Bob Doherty ( KM4BAO) at KM4BAO@yahoo.com to sign up. A detailed email will then be sent to all volunteers about 10 days prior to the event. 

Thank you in advance for volunteering! 

In response to a request from the ARRL. the FCC has clarified that the $35 license fee will NOT apply to license upgrades. The license fee will still apply to new license applications, renewals, vanity callsign requests and rule waivers. It will not apply to upgrades and administrative requests such as changes to mailing or email addresses.

The LARC Spring Picnic is going to be held on Saturday, March 26 at Lake Parker Park, 910 Granada St, Lakeland FL 33801. Come early! There will be portable HF stations set up and operating.

Lunch will start around 11:00 – 11:30. Meat will be provided by the club, bring a side or drinks for you and a friend and there will be plenty of food for everyone.

See you there!

The day we all knew was coming is here.

Today it was announced that the FCC will begin collecting license fees for amateur radio licenses on April 19. If you’re within your 90 renewal window, you want to change your callsign or upgrade your license, you have until April 18 to do it at no cost. Beginning April 19, it will cost $35 to do any of those things.

We knew this day was coming so no one should be surprised, and quite honestly, at $3.50/year, an amateur radio license is a bargain!

The FCC plans to start collecting the fees within the ULS system. More details will be shared as they come available.

For those who aren’t interested in communicating via social media (or maybe you’re just looking for something different), we have an email discussion list, too!

If you look at the top of this page you’ll see a tab called “LARC Mailing List”. Now this isn’t just any old mailing list. If you click on that tab and sign up, not only will you get the latest and greatest news about the Lakeland Amateur Radio Club (and no spam!), but it’s a great way to communicate with your fellow hams, exchange ideas, talk about radios, talk about antennas, talk about hamfests, talk about pretty much anything you can think of (but please, as in any polite form of communication, keep the politics and religion off of it).

The LARC mailing list isn’t just for dissemination of information…think of it as an open forum where you can express your ideas too (because that’s exactly what it is). Try it out!

Due to expected inclement weather Saturday morning, the LARC Spring Picnic at Lake Parker Park has been postponed. It has tentatively been rescheduled for March 26, stay tuned for more details.

The LARC Spring Picnic will be this coming Saturday, March 12 at Lake Parker Park. There will be folks arriving early, so whenever you feel like coming out, come on out! There will be portable HF stations set up and operating from the site. If you have never operated a portable station on HF, now’s your time to see how it’s done.

The club will be furnishing the meat (hot dogs and BBQ pork) and is requesting everyone bring a dish to share or drinks. Lunch will start around 11:00-11:30.

Lake Parker Park is at 910 E Granada St, Lakeland, just east of Joker Marchant Stadium.

See you there!

And what does an airplane have to do with it? Well, this isn’t just any special event station.

The Lakeland Amateur Radio Club will be operating a Special Event Station during the Sun ‘N Fun Aerospace Expo, which runs April 5-10 at the Lakeland Linder International Airport.

If you wish to operate the station, which will be on the air from April 5-9, please contact Todd Rush via email at w7str@yahoo.com or text him at 307-250-3706. A parking and attendance pass for the event will be provided for that day that you sign up to operate, and food will be provided.