The monthly meeting for Yolo County ARES came to order at 1905hrs (7:05pm) on, 19 July 2011.
Members in Attendance:
- Bill Ragsdale, K6KN, ARES AEC
- Bill Gustavson, K6BIL, Meeting Coordinator
- Todd Root, KE6GCV, acting Secretary
- Rob Brunk, N6KIX
- Gary Matteson, WA6TQJ
Visitors in Attendance (or member?):
- Will Furia, KC0RQO (Corrected from Bill)
Special Guests:
- William Chin, KI6FCA, Emergency Services Coordinator, American Red Cross Capital Region Chapter
- Quoc Tran, intern for William Chin and interested in obtaining his Amateur radio license. Quoc is a recent graduate of UC Davis and is responsible for starting the American Red Cross club on campus.
Meeting Minutes:
William Chin, Emergency Services Coordinator of the American Red Cross Capital Region Chapter, and Quoc Tran, William’s intern, were able to take time out of their day to meet with us. Those members in attendance thanked them for joining us.
- Show and Tell:
Rob, N6KIX, brought a commercial-grade Vertex Standard HT for show and tell. It’s a PC programmable 15ch, 5w handheld and can utilize accessories from the Yaesu FT-60 HT. Rob stated he saved it from being e-wasted by USPS, and was given permission to borrow it for the meeting. He’s willing to donate it to the ARES team as a tactical radio. All that’s needed is a written letter, on letterhead, asking for donations.
Towards the end of the meeting Gary showed pictures of Field Day, hosted by YARS and ARES. He stated that expenses totalled approximately $650. Gary also stated that they calculated the points obtained to be approximately 864. This includes points for Wes’ daughter who made 9 contacts (Corrected from 19 contacts). Way to go!
- BARK Repeater Site Information:
Bill G., K6BIL, stated that Crystal Communications (sp?) has purchased the vault where the BARK repeater is located, on Berryessa Peak. Per Bill, Crystal is extremely delighted to have the repeater in their vault. Currently, there is talks of putting a propane powered generator on the hill and to tie the BARK repeater into it. Details as to the progress of this is to follow.
- American Red Cross:
An in-depth discussion took place with William and ARES team members regarding the American Red Cross.
The question regarding radio room access in times of need was asked again. The access for ARES would be if no one is at, or available to open the Yolo Red Cross office; including ARES AECs LaVonne LaMoureaux, K6LAV, and Ken Wilson, K6WLS. William stated that he will talk to Vikki (sp?), office manager (?) regarding keys for ARES to access the radio room 24/7.
William advised that the second floor, where the radio room is located, has been cleaned and now more organized. He said that there is more room to setup radios. A tour of the radio room was given to those members who stayed after the meeting. I took pictures to show what has been done (to be posted by this weekend). If there is anything that ARES needs to help with the project, let William know. He’ll do as best as possible to accommodate our needs to properly setup the room.
In regards to the radio room, it was strongly suggested that we conduct monthly Nets from the Yolo office (after keys are obtained upon approval). These Nets include, but certainly are not limited to: 80m (frequency pending), ARES weekly and possibly the daily Emergency Nets, Simplex and more.
Prior to being able to conduct Nets from the radio room, however, it is suggested that a planning committee be formed to review the layout and bring to the table what is needed to complete it. As mentioned, William is willing to help as best as possible to facilitate the completion of this project. It is recommended that a review of the room be conducted towards the beginning of August (date(s) to be determined).
It has been suggested that a Logistics Officer be appointed to assist with maintaining the equipment, and to be involved with the planning committee.
The reason for wanting to get the radio room ready soon is because William is planning a shelter drill between the cities of Davis and Woodland, and the Yolo Red Cross office. Though no date has been set, it’s anticipated that the drill will be held closer to the end of September, beginning of October. More details regarding the drill are currently pending as a date is not yet set.
It has also been suggested that an Operations Officer-type position be appointed. The selected individual would be the primary point of contact by William when the need arises. The Ops Officer will then notify ARES members by utilizing the repeater and phone tree. Therefore, it is highly recommended that all ARES members ensure their contact information is up to date. If you’re capable of sending and receiving text messages on your mobile phones, I recommend the email address information be set as your Pager number. If you no longer have that email I (Todd) sent, or are unsure about how to use the text message via email option, please let me know. I will be happy to help.
The meeting was adjourned at 2030hrs (8:30pm).
