Issue #8: Kick that Radio Club into Gear!

Please discuss this issue and its contents in this forum. We are pleased to take any and all ideas regarding improvement of amateur radio clubs and keeping the hobby healthy! If you haven't seen the current issue, it's located at this link.

 

The club I belong also mostly consists of older retired guys. I am almost retired myself and the club I belong does do some things to interest new people to the hobby, but even so I go to meetings and this January wondered why I renewed. That's too bad because they do some good things for the community and ham radio in general. I have had to make some of my own fun through POTA, QRP and some experimentation. So I am conflicted about the club I belong to.

 

Hi Jim! Becoming "conflicted" is easy to do when it comes to this topic . . . For me, I'm 35-40 minutes each way from the location of in-person meetings for my club and I wish they'd vary that a bit, as it would attract newcomers from my backyard. It's a big decision to attend a meeting when you know that it's going to involve over an hour of driving. I think that clubs in physically large communities should do a locational roster and hit multiple member hot spots for meeting locations on a rotational basis.

 

As I re-read my article, I thought of two other mini-hobbies that are a part of the ham radio world, and that can be recognized inside a Radio Club with special attention paid to them now and again . . . one of them is CW and the other is Boat Anchors. There are people who will talk all night long about either of these two sub-categories and where they are clearly quite passionate. Dave

 

The internet has killed 99.99% of club programs and presentations. I can't think of a program that wasn't bested by a google search in the last 25 years. I have the world's amateurs at my fingertips...

Camaraderie and fraternity is where clubs should excel.

 

Hi Henry (or is it Hank?) . . . In many ways, this is correct. You can find just about anything with a Google search -- an immediate response to any probing question. But clubs will always hold meetings with presentations, and people will always attend, because they introduce audience members to something they may WANT to know about but they don't even know where to get started. So, I agree with you, but I don't think I want my club to stop presentations (I'd just like to see them IMPROVE on them and ensure they aren't boring!). I love to learn - that's why I'm a club member.

But as you said, camaraderie is what it's all about. That's where the "clique factor" comes in and why it's important to keep new members coming in and participating . . . Dave

 

What a great article. Super helpful and practical tips. I wish I was sharing a success story, but I've got work to do to make it so.

 

Not so sure about this.

 

I attended a ham "breakfast" this morning. Fourteen showed up... 7:30- 9:30am. This is a weekly get together. I do think more was discussed and it was probably a better club meeting than the formal club meeting.

 

Thank you Chuck. Happy that you are a reader. Appreciate your input at any time on any of my topics, Dave

 

Great! I have a lot of fun with some local folks at a regular lunch and, as you said, sometimes (frequently) it's more fun than the local ARC meeting. Dave

 

Ralph, are you seeing diminishing numbers in your local meetings? Dave

 

Hi Henry,
Yes, you may think that the Internet has obsoleted a lot of things, but I can assure you having live and interactive presentations at your club meetings will draw them in. One of the key factors here is "interactive". If it is not engaging, the audience it will feel it is boring. Coach your speakers to pause and ask questions of the group. The internet has not killed our technical program because we make it interesting and interactive.

We survey the club each December and ask what they want to do for the next year. This increases your chances of making most of the members happy.

There is also another factor at play here. Seeing one of your colleagues present on a topic that you wanted to learn about holds their attention. This is very hard to replicate with an online platform. You must have the personal connection.

Clubs still using only online meetings are missing it. The power of people meeting together is more than what you think.

Lastly, you need hands-on activities. As hard as that is to put on, it is worth it. People learn so much from it.
Hope my suggestions help you and the many clubs across the country. Let's kick these clubs into high gear!

 

What are some of the topics that have been presented at your club?

 

Glad that Marty is here as well, KB4MG! One thing that didn't come out in Marty's interview on Trials and Errors was our discussion about group events at his club, such as building an antenna (Marty, what was it, a "tape measure Yagi?"). This is the kind of stuff that we believe holds a ham club together and helps those Technician licensees see a path forward. Dave