Radio Operators Show Skills and Educate About Their Service

The Larkfield Amateur Radio Club participated in Field Day this weekend, an annual, 24-hour event where groups across mostly the US and Canada to demonstrate the value of their service and skills.

They also  compete to see who can make the most connections on their analog radios.

Thirty or so “hams,” as they are known, gathered at the Dix Hills Fire Department to compare their home-built radios, swap tips and contact others across the globe.

Members spanned decades of experience, with some gaining their license back in the 1950’s. Each ham sported a tag with their first name and unique license number that could be used to identify their radio. These tags could be looked up on websites like qrz.com that function like radio social media.

Radio clubs have long served as a means for creating community.

“At a time when making a phone call to Europe wasn’t always feasible, I was stunned to find out that my uncle, who was a ham, could talk to guys in Europe all the time,” said Peter DeLuca, president of the Larkfield Amateur Radio Club. While technology like WhatsApp has removed most barriers to international communication, there is still a thrill to connecting to a new country with many hams competing to get as many countries as possible.

“Did you just get Poland?” While we were visiting, a ham established contact with SP6AXW. This license corresponds to Kazimierz Animucki who was able to pass along a hello.

There is also a practical element to radio clubs, contacting someone when cell service is unavailable.

DeLuca found himself in that situation where his radio was particularly useful two years ago. Right after Hurricane Fiona had hit Puerto Rico, leaving most residents on the Island without cell service, members of the club joined a national effort to contact Puerto Rican residents in collaboration with the American Red Cross.

“When it was my turn to make a call, a ham in Puerto Rico got back to me. He passed along a message from a family asking us to call a specific number and tell him that his aunt and uncle and the kids were all fine…” DeLuca recalled. He was able to successfully let the family living in the mainland states know about their relatives. The radio club has stepped up during other natural disasters as well, such as Hurricane Sandy.

Whether it is contacting emergency services or bonding over transistors, the Larkfield Amateur Radio Club is a fixture of the Long Island community.

So next year, on the fourth full week of June, you can expect to hear the clicking of Morse code and excited shouts over the new countries contacted late into the night.

Kazimierz Animucki

Members of the Larkfield Radio Club