The meeting was called to order at 19:30
The club officers and board members in attendance were:
- NY4I – Tom (President)
- AB4YI – Carol (Vice President)
- W7WMS – Will (Treasurer)
- K2BHS – Bruce (Secretary/Newsletter Editor)
- KI4UIP – John (Board Member)
- KO4CEE – Alex (Repeater Trustee)
- AA2MF – Richie (Past President)
- KA4IOX – Paul (Events Coordinator)
- N2ESP – Bob (President Emeritus)
- N4GD – Dee (Board Member/Repeater Maintenance Manager)
- KR4U – Dave (Club Station W4GAC Trustee)
- KZØJ – Nic (Board Member)
All members introduced themselves
Recognition – Several members worked rare DX (Bruce – K2BHS worked the Azores, Mary – KQ4APT worked Pakistan, Lou – KB4DSL worked Palestine). There were multiple members who had multiple POTA activations: (Bruce – K2BHS with Sawgrass Lakes, Alex – KO4CEE with Sawgrass Lakes, and Lisa – KC1YL with 20 parks in multiple states). Olev – N4OHI had a Route 66 clean sweep.
The minutes from the September 2025 meeting were posted on the website and have been approved as distributed.
Carol, AB4YI had nothing to report.
The program for the October 2025 Meeting was cancelled due to unforeseen circumstances.
Club Treasurer, Will, W7WMS gave the monthly Treasurer’s Report. He reported the balances for the month. He also reported membership stats for this month (currently 143 members).
The club welcomed a new member. The new member is:
Benjamin Thompson, KR4GUZ
motion was made by Bruce – K2BHS to approve the new members. Orin – KG1S seconded. The motion passed.
Will, W7WMS announced that the window to pay dues for 2026 is now open
Dave, KR4U reported the contest was successful and that the equipment worked well and band conditions were good. He also reported that there is some equipment that is available for sale, including an Icom IC-746pro (that has been tested), antenna tuners. Club members will have first preference to purchase the items and that a price list will be posted.
Dee, N4GD reported that all three repeaters are working and operational at this time.
Alex, KO4CEE reported that there was an issue with the 2-meter repeater’s power supply. The repairs were made and the repeater is operational at this time.
Will, W7WMS reported on VE Testing for September 2025 – It was reported that there one new Technician, one General upgrade and one Extra upgrade.
Bruce, K2BHS reported that the minutes for the September 2025 meeting are on the website. He also reported that he expects to have the next edition of the SPARC Gap Newsletter to be posted within the next week.
Paul, KA4IOX – Events/Activities Coordinator, reported on the RTTY contest on 9/26/25. He further mentioned that there were no results available at this time, but there were 538 QSOs. There is an upcoming RTTY Contest. Two transceivers will be used (the Flex and IC-7610) at 100 watts. The contest is scheduled for 20:00 – 04:00 on Friday 10/10 and 12:00 – 20:00 on Saturday 10/11. He additionally reported there is the ARRL SSB Sweepstakes Contest on 11/15 – 11/16; the exchanges that will be used are very long.
Alex, KO4CEE gave the Net Manager’s report for both nets for August. The totals were as follows:
- QNI: 635 total check-ins (608 for the 2-meter net & 27 for the 220/440 net)
- QTC: 31 messages passed (30 for the 2-meter net & 1 for the 220/440 net)
- QND: 969 minutes (16.15 hours) (931 for the 2-meter net & 38 for the 220/440 net)
- There was a total of 34 (30 for the 2-meter net & 4 for the 220/440 net) sessions for September
He further stated that he is looking for additional new Net Control Stations.
October’s Program was Bylaws, Board/Officer Nominations. The Card Checker was unable to come due to unforeseen circumstances.
Upcoming Programs:
-
- November – Officer Elections & Voting on Bylaws Changes
- December – Reverse Beacon by Pat, AAØO.
- January – Winter Field Day
- Hal, W1EES announced the members of the Nominating Committee. The Nominating Committee members are: Hal – W1EES (chairperson), Bob – N2ESP & John – KI4UIPThe current officers are:
- Tom, NY4I – President
- Carol, AB4YI – Vice President
- Will, W7WMS – Treasurer
- Bruce, K2BHS – Secretary
- John, KI4UIP – Board Member #1
- Dee, N4GD – Board Member #2
- Nick, KZØJ -Board Member #3
There were no new nominations for any of the Executive Board Members from the membership. Thus all current officers are running unopposed and are therefore re-elected by acclimation.
Tom, NY4I reported that due to the changing business needs of the owner of DMI, the club will need to vacate by the end of 2025. He read the text that he had received from Kathy of DMI, to the membership. He also mentioned that the shack and the antennas will need to be dismantled/removed. He further that there was nothing that the club did to cause the loss of the space.
There will be a Special Board Meeting on 10/14/25 @18:30. He received some good feedback with good leads.
- Meeting Place
- Club Station (added bonus)
It was also noted that volunteers are needed to create literature to provide to potential new locations, Create a flyer about the club. The ideal geographic areas are North St. Pete and Pinellas Park, but anything will be considered.
Carol – AB4YI presented the potential bylaws changes. They have been posted in this meeting which satisfies the notification requirement.
New Business:
It was also reported that due to the Federal Government shutdown, the FCC systems are not processing at this time. This means that anyone needing a new FRN Number cannot get one at this time. Tests can still be administered at this time, but there is a possibility of processing delays. Tests will be put in queue until the government reopens. Check with the VEC for further details.
No new business was presented and/or discussed at this meeting
Dave, K4DRW won the 50/50 with a total jackpot of $20. Congratulations Dave!
The Meeting was adjourned at 21:00
73’s
Respectfully Submitted,
Bruce H. Solov, K2BHS