It is with great pleasure I announce the ACARA Meshtastic build day. Please see the attached flyer for all information. This will occur on Sunday May 3rd at the red cross from 1:30pm to 4:30pm. The cost to participate will be $70.00 per person, due by check send to ACARA, PO Box 72, Athens, OH 45701. Alternatively, payment can be made via PayPal to treasurer@ac-ara.org.If paying through PayPal please include the note “Meshtastic Project” with your payment. Payment to participate . . .
Author: Eric McFadden
Kroger Community Rewards Program
Athens County Amateur Radio Association is now available as an organization within the Kroger Community Rewards Program. This means that Kroger shoppers can select ACARA as their organization of choice, and ACARA will earn a small donation based on the Kroger shopper’s purchases made using the shopper’s Kroger Shopper’s Card. The Kroger Community Rewards Program is described here: https://www.kroger.com/i/community/community-rewards. ACARA members who wish to support ACARA will need to have a Kroger Shopper’s Card, and they will need to be . . .
Report: Winter Field Day 2026
On Saturday, January 24, 2026, members of ACARA met at the Jim Crouse Memorial Radio Station in the Athens Red Cross chapter house to participate in the annual Winter Field Day (https://winterfieldday.org/) event in class “2I” (two transmitter, indoors). While waiting for the arrival of a major winter storm, ACARA members operated as W8UKE from the start of the event at 11am EST until the snow arrived at 9pm EST. The group succeeded in making 157 QSOs using CW, SSB, . . .
Annual Holiday Dinner: Tuesday, December 16, 2025
The ACARA’s annual Holiday Dinner will be on Tuesday, December 16, 2025, at Applebee’s in Athens. All members and their guests are invited. We will meet at 5:30 pm for hors d’oeuvres and we’ll order our dinners from the menu at 6pm. As has become our tradition, the club will pay for hors d’oeuvres. Applebee’s is located at 547 East State Street in Athens and the menu is available online: https://restaurants.applebees.com/en-us/oh/athens/547-e-state-st-75062. During the holiday party, we will announce the winner . . .
ARRL 10-Meter Contest + NC8V Memorial Trophy – December 13-14, 2025 (Updated 2025-12-18)
The ARRL 10-Meter Contest is the weekend of December 13-14, 2025 UTC. Full rules for the ARRL 10-Meter Contest can be found at http://www.arrl.org/10-meter. The ARRL 10-Meter Contest is important to Athens County Amateur Radio Association (ACARA) members for two reasons: I will be announcing the winner of the NC8V Memorial Trophy at the annual Holiday Dinner on December 16, so please send me the number of stations you worked and your submitted score prior to the evening of Monday, December 16. I hope to . . .
(Belated) Report: ARRL Field Day 2025 — Updated 2025-11-05
ACARA participated in the largest operating event in the Amateur Radio calendar, ARRL Field Day, on Saturday and Sunday, June 28-29, 2025, at the Athens Red Cross. Using the callsign “K8V”, the club succeeded in making 590 contacts on HF and 6 meters, using CW, SSB, and digital modes. Field Day co-chairs Paul Schulz, WD8SCV, and Drew McDaniel, W8MHV chose to perform the Field Day operation at the Athens Red Cross in Class 2F (two-transmitter, Emergency Operations Center). Prior to . . .
Report: PCARS Ohio State Parks on the Air 2025
On Saturday, September 6, 2025, members of ACARA participated in the 18th annual PCARS “Ohio State Parks on the Air” (OSPOTA, https://parksontheair.com/), activating Strouds Run State Park at the Bulldog Shelter and operating under the club’s callsign, W8UKE. Participants:Bob Curtis, KD8FRQJohn McCutcheon, N8XWODrew McDaniel, W8MHVEric McFadden, WD8RIFMiles McFadden, KD8KNCVickie McFadden, KC8MAJHeidi TouthLen Touth, W8VQ The station consisted of the club’s Elecraft K3 transceiver, Eric’s Elecraft KX3 transceiver, an Astron linear power supply, an 80m/40m fan dipole, the club’s Chameleon EMCOMM . . .
Upcoming Event: Ohio State Parks on the Air, Saturday, September 6, 2025
ACARA will participate in Ohio State Parks on the Air (OSPOTA) on Saturday, September 6, 2025. OSPOTA is an annual field operating event wherein participants try to work stations at as many Ohio State Parks as they can. The event runs from 10am until 6pm. The ACARA operation will take place at Strouds Run State Park’s Bulldog Shelter (map). Station set-up will begin at 9am. Operations will commence at 10am and will continue until the potluck at 5pm. Operations on . . .
Save the Date: ARRL Field Day, June 28-29, 2025
ARRL Field Day (https://www.arrl.org/field-day) will take place on Saturday and Sunday, June 28-29, 2025. As we did last year, our operations will take place in the air-conditioned Athens Red Cross facility, 100 South May Avenue (map). Set-up will begin at 10:30am on Saturday, with a safety briefing / training session at 10:45am, followed by assembly of the station. Field Day operations will start at 2pm Saturday and will run through 2pm Sunday, with tear-down starting at 2pm on Sunday. The . . .
Annual June Picnic — Tuesday, June 17, 2025
ACARA does not hold a business meeting in June (or July and August) but will, instead, meet for the Annual June Picnic on the third Tuesday in June. This year, the Annual June Picnic will be held on Tuesday, June 17, 2025 at the Dairy Lane Picnic Shelter on South Park Drive in Athens. (Here’s a map.) We’ll meet at 5:30pm and will eat at 6pm. The club will provide burgers, brats, buns, and condiments. Members and guests are asked . . .