Ham Radio Operators Show off Emergency Communications at Community Day

Thousands of Ham Radio operators nationwide show off their emergency capabilities Saturday and Sunday, June 28 & 29. The local Field Day demo will be held during the Town of Poughkeepsie's annual Community Day festival at Bowdoin Park on Sheafe Road. Over the past year, ham radio operators provided critical communications in emergencies including the California wildfires, Oregon and Michigan storms, tornadoes and other international events. During Hurricane Katrina, Amateur Radio – often called “Ham radio” - was often the only way people could communicate, and hundreds of volunteer “hams” traveled south to save lives and property. When trouble is brewing, ham radio people are often the first to provide critical information and communications.

Those attending Poughkeepsie's Community Day can meet and talk with ham radio operators find out about Amateur Radio Service. Displaying the newest digital and satellite capabilities, voice communications and even historical Morse code, hams from across the country host Field Day demos of emergency communications abilities. Samuel Morse was also a Town of Poughkeepsie resident; his home, Locust Grove is open for tours. Find out about their gardens, trails and galleries at www.LGNY.org

Field Day is the high point of "Amateur Radio Week" sponsored by ARRL, the national association for Amateur Radio. Using only emergency power supplies, ham operators construct emergency stations in parks, shopping malls, schools and back yards across the USA. Their slogan, "Ham radio works when other systems don't! " is more than just words, as hams prove they can send messages in many forms without the use of phone systems, internet or any other infrastructure that can be compromised in a crisis. More than 30,000 amateur radio operators nationwide participated in last year's Field Day.

"We hope people come and see for themselves, this is not your grandfather's radio anymore," said Shirley Dahlgren, club spokesperson. "The communications networks ham radio people can quickly create have saved many lives in the past months when other systems failed or were overloaded.”

At the Town's Community Day, the QSY Society Amateur Radio Club puts on a show at Dutchess County’s Bowdoin Park, Pavilion 4, from 2pm Saturday, June 28 through 2pm Sunday, June 29. See ham radio’s new capabilities and learn how to get an FCC radio license before the next disaster strikes. Joining them on Saturday from noon to 4pm are the emergency communications vehicles of the Dutchess County Red Cross and the Dutchess County Mobile Command Vehicle. Bring your family and friends to enjoy the festival as well as learn something useful at these fascinating demos.

There are 650,000 US Amateur Radio licensees and more than 2.5 million worldwide. Through the ARRL’s ARES program, volunteers provide emergency communications for thousands of state and area emergency response agencies, all for free.

Learn more at www.emergency-radio.org or call 1-860-594-0200. Information regarding Field Day or the QSY Society is available at 914/736-0717, n2skp@arrl.net or the club’s website at www.qsysociety.org  See what modern Amateur Radio can do. They can even help you get on the air!