Cody Gehlert(KE0FOT) Sullivan Amateur Radio Club
Meeting Minutes
April 13, 2023
The monthly meeting was called to order at 6:01 PM at Sullivan Fire House #1 by President Bill Higgins. The Pledge of Allegiance, a prayer and a moment of silence were observed.
Barb Durbin, Secretary, read the minutes from the previous meeting. A motion by Mike Benton to accept as read was seconded by Terri Booth. Motion passed.
Mark Ervine, Treasurer, noted expenditures and receipts and advised our current bank balance is $1924.71. Mike Benton made a motion to accept as read, seconded by Tom Hobbs. Motion passed.
Mike Benton took a moment to acknowledge the recent work improving our repeater. He thanked Chris Westrick and Bill Higgins for the work done to accomplish the switch to the new equipment.
Repeater Committee: Chris Westrick noted that the new repeater had been installed ahead of schedule. The controller cables won’t be available from the manufacturer until after April 24th. He will work on installing the controller after the cables are received. Bill Higgins has gotten connectors but still needs cables and fuse for the battery backup. The Cans will still be tuned in the near future but will require the repeater to be shut down for at least 24 hours.
Old Business:
HARN is scheduled for tomorrow. Tom Hobbs and Dave Johnson will be there. The hospital antenna is currently broken. Dave Johnson will coordinate with the hospital to correct the problem. We appreciate Tom and Dave’s faithfulness to this community service project and encourage others to participate.
POTA is scheduled for 10 AM this Saturday (the 15th) at Onondaga State Park at the picnic shelter. Dave Johnson secured the shelter for us at no charge. Attendance is encouraged. We need to explore the purchasing or development of band pass filters since radios are in close proximity during events like this. Would also be useful for field days. Wayne Durbin will research the filter situation.
Hamfest Committee: Dave Johnson advised the Eagles Hall is not available for the suggested Halloween Hamfest. The Eagles are agreeable to us using their site for a hamfest planned at a different date. We may consider one of our own at a time not interfering with existing hamfests in the future.
From researching local hamfests it was decided to table the idea for now and possibly concentrate on another Trivia night/gun raffle (requiring must be present to win) along with advertisement.
The Third Annual Family Fun Day is coming quickly on May 6th. The location will be the Shelter near the Hickory Ridge Event Center. We will eat at noon. Flyers will be mailed to encourage attendance. Mike Benton made a motion, seconded by Barb Durbin, to take a collection that day for Dave Johnson to offer to the concessionaire for their generosity in providing a free place for the third year in a row for us to meet as well as others like Field Day. The motion passed. It was suggested that we cater the meat for the lunch. Jason Pope was suggested as caterer. Barb Durbin will contact him to see if he’s available. We would need about 4 or 5 pork butts for the pulled pork. Chris Westrick has a towable grill available for hot dogs and hamburgers. Attendees will be asked to bring a vegetable or covered dish to share as well as their own drinks. We will provide games for the adults and children (Chris Westrick and Barb Durbin), gift card prizes(Bill Higgins), and a grand prize radio to be researched by Bill Higgins. We will offer 1 free grand prize ticket to each family and offer additional tickets for purchase at $5 each. Additional small prizes will be made available (Wayne Durbin).
Field day in June will be at the Hickory Ridge Event Center in Meramec State Park. Dave Johnson suggested that if anyone is planning on camping that weekend they make reservations as soon as possible as spaces fill up quickly in advance.
New Business:
Larry Hults and Cody Gehlert have installed a Google Calendar for the club that is currently being tested. Give it a look and see if it works for us.
Knucklehead dinner will be next Tuesday evening at the Sirloin Stockade in Rolla at 6 PM. Barb Durbin will make reservations.
Gun Raffle – Chris Westrick has a Smith & Wesson 9mm FPC folding pistol carbine in the works for our raffle. After discussion, a motion was made by Dave Johnson, seconded by Wayne Durbin, to offer this pistol, with tickets selling for $20 each, limiting sale to 100 tickets. All tickets to be sold by May 31st and drawn at the June meeting if not sooner. Motion passed. We plan to have tickets available by the Family Fun Day picnic.
T-shirts are needed. Mark Ervine will explore the possibility of being able to order online individually or using a local vendor for a mass order. Artwork will be needed if using a new provider. Patricia Gray will check with Bella to see if she still has the artwork she designed.
A Total Solar Eclipse will be happening on April 8th, 2024. The line of totality covers part of southeastern Missouri near Poplar Bluff. Do we want to plan an event? Camping, day trip, local event? Start planning. Bill Higgins will take the lead on this.
Barb Durbin made a motion to honor Betty Bassinger and Wanda Heads with lifetime club membership including full voting privileges and no dues. It was seconded by Dave Johnson. Motion passed.
Dave Johnson mentioned that the Bandstand/POTA area at Meramec State Park is available for music performances. If anyone has any suggestions or knows someone interested, please contact Dave.
At 7:36 PM Bill Chapman made a motion to adjourn, seconded by Mike Benton. Motion passed.
