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| | | | | The Radio Club of America (RCA) has brought together wireless industry professionals and amateur radio operators for more than 100 years. Each  year, it bestows prestigious awards and elevates several members to RCA Fellows status. This year, as always, many of the recipients are hams.
Amateur radio operator award recipients include Dr. Charles C. Counselman, III, W1HIS, who developed technology for making highly accurate GPS positioning widely available; Jay Adrick, K8CJY, who helped develop digital television and serves as Board President of the National Voice of America Museum of Broadcasting; inventor Charles Kirmuss, WØCBK, who developed digital video and audio recording systems for public safety; RCA Carole Perry Young Professional Award winner and electrical engineer Audrey McElroy, KM4BUN, a longtime proponent of youth in amateur radio; Dr. Ajay Poddar, AC2KG, an internationally recognized leader in radio science and engineering; Dr. Henry Richter, W6VZA (SK), who developed the communications system for Explorer 1, the first US Earth satellite, and Anthony Rizi, NR1Z, a military and cybersecurity professional and college professor who is also active with the Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS).
This year’s class of RCA Fellows includes amateurs Rachel Jones, KO4HLC; Geoffrey Mendenhall, W8GNM; Nick Pennance, N1CKP, and Dominic “Nick” Tusa, K5EF.
The award winners and new Fellows will be formally recognized at RCA’s 2026 Technical Symposium and 117th Awards Banquet in New York City on November 21. Visit the club’s website for a complete list of awardees and their biographies. |
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| | | By: Josh Johnston, KE5MHV, Emergency Communications and Field Services Director
We regularly hear stories about clubs hosting Technician classes and about how many new hams and licensees there are. This is fantastic! But the challenge comes with what we do to help these new hams once they’re licensed.
How many of these new Technicians are active and getting on the air? How many are learning about the wonderful world of HF radio? While Technicians can enjoy a portion of the HF bands, it is very limited for their license class. Once a ham becomes a General-class licensee, they gain access to many of the bands, and the world of possibilities is endless.
If your club is encouraging new Technicians to take the next step and get their General license, then they are working to increase activity within their club — active hams make active club members. This can be done by hosting General license classes and fostering a get-on-the-air attitude that inspires hams to take that next step. Consider hosting an antenna build for new hams where they can create simple antennas to help them get on the air, giving them the ability to contact DX stations from the clubhouse or a club member’s shack, helping them set up a simple HF station at their home, or even introducing them to Parks on the Air or other portable operating activities.
I will never forget my first DX contact on HF to Argentina. The excitement I had after completing my first homebrew wire dipole, hooking it up, and making that contact was unforgettable. Think about your first HF contact and the excitement you felt; share that experience with new hams and see how that excitement spreads throughout your club.
If your club is helping hams be more than just licensed, the club and individual (as well as ham radio) will benefit. I encourage clubs to take an active part in helping new hams get on the air and giving them an opportunity to try operating HF, especially DX.
Remember, active clubs are healthy clubs. |
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By Maria Somma, AB1FM, ARRL VEC Manager While amateur radio operators are generally diligent about updating and renewing their individual licenses, club licenses can sometimes be  overlooked. It’s important for clubs to periodically review their club license information to ensure everything is current. Take a few moments to verify that your club’s mailing address and trustee information are accurate in the FCC License database. Also, confirm that the license is not approaching expiration. All club license transactions (except for new vanity call sign requests) must be handled through an FCC-approved Club Station Call Sign Administrator (CSCSA) by completing a 605-C Form (Club Station Application). This form cannot be submitted directly to the FCC, and club transactions cannot be completed through the FCC’s website. The ARRL VEC is a CSCSA and can process these requests for your club. Please refer to the appropriate instructions and club application form to help you update or renew your club license. Keeping your club license up to date helps ensure smooth operations and continued FCC compliance. If you have questions or need help, please contact the ARRL VEC department. |
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Contesting for the Beginning Radio Amateur Join Wayne Greene, KB4DSF, ARRL Director of Education and Learning,  for the October episode of On the Air Live on Tuesday, October 27, at 8 PM Eastern. Wayne will introduce the fun and benefits of amateur radio contesting, with a special focus on how newly licensed hams can get started.
Contesting is more than chasing points and making contacts. It’s a great way to improve your operating skills, gain confidence on the air, learn about propagation, and become a more effective operator—all while having a lot of fun. Whether you’re interested in casual operating, awards, emergency communications, DXing, or eventually competing in major contests, contesting can help sharpen skills that carry across the hobby. The livestream will air on the ARRL's Learning Center, learn.arrl.org. Preregistration is required and can be accomplished through the Learning Center.
📅 Date: October 27, 2026 🕗 Time: 8:00 PM Eastern/5:00 PM Pacific 👉 Register Now | ⏪ Previously Recorded Sessions |
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The Nashua Area Radio Society, an ARRL Affiliated Club, will be holding its next online Ham Bootcamp on Saturday, November 14, from 10 AM to 6 PM Eastern time. Ham Bootcamp is an interactive online program that helps new, inactive, and prospective hams learn the skills needed to get on the air. The morning sessions are all about VHF, and the afternoon sessions focus on HF. There is no fee to attend Ham Bootcamp. Advance registration is requested. Questions may be emailed to bootcamp@n1fd.org. |
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| | | In an effort to maintain updated Affiliated Club Records, we will be reviewing clubs that have not updated their Affiliated Club listing and moving these clubs to inactive status. This includes updated emails and club contact information. One of the requirements of an affiliated club is to do annual club updates. Information on how to do your club update is found at: www.arrl.org/club-update.
We also encourage clubs to verify that their listed email is accurate and working. This allows anyone who may be interested in your club or who may need to contact your club to have a simple email contact. |
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If you or your club has activities, ideas, or general interest articles you would like to contribute to the ARRL Club Newsletter, send them to us at clubs@arrl.org. We would love to have an article each month to highlight the activities, ideas, and interests of clubs and club members. Please include photos with captions if you have them. |
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If your amateur radio club is planning to host a convention, hamfest, tailgate, or swapfest, please consider applying for it to be an ARRL-sanctioned event. To learn what it means to be an ARRL-sanctioned event, and to get some ideas on how to prepare for and conduct a hamfest or convention, visit www.arrl.org/arrl-sanctioned-events.
To have your event sanctioned, complete the online application at www.arrl.org/hamfest-convention-application.
Please send a copy of the application that returns to you to Steve Ewald at sewald@arrl.org.
The ARRL Hamfests and Conventions Calendar can be found online at www.arrl.org/hamfests. In addition, the Convention and Hamfest Calendar that runs in QST each month also presents information about upcoming events. |
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ARRL Club News is published every month (12 times each year). ARRL members may subscribe at no cost or unsubscribe by editing their Member Data Page at www.arrl.org/opt-in-out.
Copyright © 2026 American Radio Relay League, Incorporated. Use and distribution of this publication, or any portion thereof, is permitted for non-commercial or educational purposes, with attribution. All other purposes require written permission. |
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