First licensed in Sept 1964 as a junior in high school as a novice with the callsign of WN4VDZ.  Tested again in 1965 for Technician as my father would not let me skip a day from high school to travel to the FCC office in Mobile, Alabama from Pensacola, Florida for General.  Received the call sign WB4BSZ with the late Mr Vernon Colley W4QK giving me my test for Technician in his radio shack here in Pensacola.  Mr Colley was also my Sunday School teacher.  Very much old school as one Sunday morning in his class he asked me if I had studied my lesson the night before.  Knowing he would be able to detect a little white lie being so formadable in experience both religiously and electronically I answered with the truth, "No Sir, I forgot, but I did work a K6 on 40 CW".  At that very moment I concluded in my teenage reasoning ability I should have sinned and lied asking forgiveness later.  My father who was the minsister of music at the church found about that and ham readioing was marked off my Saturday night social schedule for a month.  Obtained General at the FCC office Mobile, AL in 1970, and soon afterward Advanced.  Yep, both times at the Mobile FCC office the examiner wore a thin black tie, white shirt, dark pants, and of course black framed glasses, pocket protector, and a flat-top haircut.  Didn't they all back then?  The office secretary who read aloud the pass/no pass list with her words being echoed by the  plastered walls, high ceiling, and hardwood floors had a personality that could have frozen tropical waters in summer.  The tone of her monotone voice was akin to a 2000 cycle nasal saw tooth sine wave.  Even though my last name begins with a letter in the middle of the alphabet, I thought then everybody in that room had a last name starting with a letter before mine.  Then all of a sudden out of the saw tooth nasal sine wave noise level came my name and "pass".  I just sat there for a while composing myself before leaving the room.  After an undergraduate degree, service in the US Navy, marriage, first home mortgage, two children, new car payments (mini-vans), graduate and post graduate schools, lots of parenting activities, and work at the office, obtained 20 wpm Extra in1985 and received the vanity call sign W4RL in 1996. 

Popular Electronics Short Wave Monitor Call Sign WPE4FGR July 1962 receiving with a Hallicrafters S-53A that I still have in working order.  My dad bought it for me for Christmas.

ARRL Rag Chewers Club.

WAS 6 meters April 1980 with 27 countries.

39 year member of the ARRL.

Founding Member of the Gulf Coast Mullet Society and trustee of W4GCM.

Founding Member of the North West Florida Amateur Radio Weather Association and trustee of W4NWF.

Member of AMI and the Southeastern AM Radio Club.

SMIRK # 812    10-10 International # 9123    SKCC # 1355

Present interest: my grandson, AM Boatanchors, APRS weather stations, NOAA APT weather satellites picture reception, salt water fly fishing, RC sailplanes, digital photography, and of course ham radio. 

Present profession: None/Retired. In my former life I was a State licensed mental health counselor/counseling psychologist for 32 years.  Now I spend time as being a full time grandfather.  Oh, it almost slipped my mind, I'm also a Senior Honey Do Technician (SHDT) w/full company benefits employed by my bride of 39 years.  

73 de robert w4rl wpe4fgr, previously wn4vdz and wb4bsz Pensacola Florida