I was first licensed in March 2004 as KB1LCS. I upgraded to General and received a vanity callsign W8DEC in June 2009.

I am a military veteran. I served as a corpsman at the naval submarine base hospital in Groton, CT and aboard the USS Cape St George CG-71 in Norfolk, VA. I then transferred to the CT Army National Guard as a medic (91W then, now 68W). When, I moved back home to Ohio toward the end of 2006, I transferred to the Army Reserve component IRR. I received an honorable discharge in March 2012.

In Scouting, I joined Troop 68 in Painesville, Ohio in 1990. I have been on Trading Post B staff at the 1997 BSA National Jamboree, staff for 1997 / 1998 Camp Stigwandish summer camp, and been to Florida Sea Base. I am a Brotherhood member of the Order of the Arrow. I have also served as Assistant Scoutmaster and Cubmaster.

I deployed to Hattiesburg, MS and Bay St Louis, MS with Portsmouth, VA ARES to support amateur radio communications for Hurricane Katrina on September 11, 2005.

My HF station consists of a Kenwood TS-2000, 948, and homebrew 125' dipole antenna about 40 feet in the air. I enjoy running 20W on 20M PSK using the Tigertronics Signalink USB and enjoy ragchewing on 6 meters, 220 and 440 MHz. I use the TS-2000 for VHF/UHF and use it with a Diamond V2000A fed with 35' Belden 9913.

My portable base station (go-box) consists of an IC-7000 and Kenwood TM-V7A as well as another Tigertronics Signalink USB. I have used this station for the Field Day, Ohio QSO Party, and Ohio State Parks on the Air. My mobile station is W8DEC-9 using a Kenwood TM-D710A and an AVMAP G6. I also have a Kenwood TK-630H that I use for 6M FM, a Jetstream JT220M for 220 MHz FM, and a Motorola M1225 for UHF 440 MHz FM.

My all-time favorite aspect of the hobby is participating in public service events. They give me the opportunity to put my radio equipment to the test and help keep my skills honed. I volunteered for the 2005 Marine Corps Marathon in Washington, DC. I have volunteered for over 50 different public service events throughout 5 ARRL Sections.

The photo below is from the 2012 American Cancer Society Pan Ohio Hope Ride (POHR). POHR is a 328 mile bicycle ride spanning 12 counties from Cleveland to Cincinnati in 4 days. Contact me if you're interested in volunteering. It's an awesome adventure! Check out www.panohiohoperide.org for details about the event.

The photo below is from the 2011 Great Lakes Emergency Communications Conference (GLECC). 2013 will mark my third year as chairman for this excellent conference. Check out www.glecc.org for details.

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If you can't find me on the air, I can be found behind the counter at Cleveland's own Amateur Electronic Supply (AES).

 

 

 

 

Alright, here is my brag sheet:

Section Emergency Coordinator (2012-Present) - ARRL Ohio Section

District Emergency Coordinator (2007-2012) - Ohio ARES District 10

Official Emergency Station (2005 - Present)

ARRL and W5YI Volunteer Examiner

ARRL EC-001 Field Instructor

ARRL Emcomm Field Examiner

Event Chairman (2011-Present) - Great Lakes Emergency Communications Conference (GLECC)

Presenter (2009 - Present) - EMCOMM EAST, Rochester, NY

License Trustee for W8TEN

Co-Captain -  Team SAGCOMM

President 2013 - Geauga County Amateur Radio Association (GARA)

Vice Prez 2009 -2013 - Geauga County Amateur Radio Association (GARA)

Member - American Radio Relay League (ARRL)

Member - Salvation Team Emergency Radio Network (SATERN)

Member - Ashtabula County Amateur Radio Club (ACARC)

Member - Lake Erie Amateur Radio Association (LEARA)

Member - Portage County Amateur Radio Service (PCARS)

Past Radio Officer - Lake County Amateur Radio Association

Past NCS - Eastern CT Traffic Net and Tri-County Traffic Training Net

Past President - Radio Amateur Society or Norwich, CT

Charter President - Radio Amateur Society of Norfolk, VA (Honorary Member)

Past Member - Portsmouth, VA ARES

ARRL Elmer Award Recipient (2013)

 

TRAINING

ARRL EC-001

FEMA AUXCOMM

SKYWARN

Emergency Medical Technician - Basic (NREMT-B)

FEMA COURSES COMPLETED:

IS-100, IS-195, IS-200, IS-244, IS-300, IS-700, IS-701, IS-800, IS-802, IS-804, IS-809