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QMN PICNIC AND BUSINESS MEETING

On Saturday August 22, eleven QMN members and their spouses picnicked at the Dear Run Pavilion at Burchfield Park in Ingham County.  The pavilion was not like in your usual city park.  It was set in a beautiful wood with rustic pathways, but we still had modern facilities.  Thanks to K8RDN for finding this treasure.  The barbeque built by K8LJG worked well for our hotdogs and brats.  The potluck was a smorgasbord of delights.

By 2:00 PM when we were thoroughly stuffed like Thanksgiving turkeys, we started the QMN business meeting.  Here are the basics of what we decided. 

•    We are pretty well set on net control stations and 8th region reps at this time, but we will need some new volunteers when K8KVleaves for sunny Florida at the end of October.  We tried, without much success, to encourage those who have not stepped up as net control to give it a try.

•    NWS reps were discussed and it was decided that those trained to be NWS reps could take the traffic on the days they were either net control or there for other duties, if Anne did not check in.

•    Net QNI’s have increased since the100 club was established so we think it is encouraging more participation.

•    WB9JSR will take care of QMN webpage updates

•    What to do with the funds we received for the digipeters was discussed and tabled until we have more information on the original source and intent of the funds.  K8LJG was doing to look into his files to see what he has in regard to the source and intent.

•    Elections of officers took place and all continue in their past positions.  No surprises!  K8AE QMN General Manager and Early Net Manager, K8SB Late Net manager and K8LJG Secretary-Treasurer.
 
•    SATURDAY NET HAS BEEN REESTABLISHED AND K8DD WILL BE THE REGUALAR NET CONTROL.

•    QMN REFLECTOR WILL BE OPEN TO QMN MEMBERS ONLY AND THOSE WHO HAVE QNI NET IN THE LAST TWO YEARS.  IF NOT A MEMBER OF REFLECTOR AT THIS TIME YOU WILL BE INVITED TO JOIN.  K8DD AND WB8SIW ARE WORKING ON THIS.

The meeting adjourned and we all left for home about 3:45 PM.
OUR NONAGENARIANS (90+years)

Don Devondorf W8EGI Don’s ancestral roots are in New York State (born Albany 1914), but he grew up in Jackson, Michigan. His original W8EGI station license is dated February 24, 1931 and his first transmitter was TNT: Plate tuned, grid not tuned. His 201-A receiving tube was probably less than one watt since it was powered by three 45-volt B batteries in series. He soon upgraded to a 210 power triode and AC plate supply, now maybe 20 watts on 80-meter CW and began exchanging message traffic on informal hit-and-miss skeds with other like- minded high school kids in Detroit, Toledo, Cleveland, Fort Wayne, even Leamington and Toronto Canada.

Don says, “About then crystals began replacing our wobbly self-excited single tube oscillators and a number on the crystal holder now said where we supposedly were, like "3545." We never worked any station near our own frequency if we could avoid it--far too noisy because we all used full-break-in and separate receiving antennas. Our primitive 2 or 3 tube regenerative receivers had little sensitivity and no selectivity whatsoever. In those days a "VFO" consisted of, say, three crystals; one near the low band end, one near the middle and another close to the high end of 80.”

Don was QMN Net Manager from the mid-fifties to the early sixties We always know when it has rained, sleeted or snowed in East Lansing because Don is an avid NWS reporter.  He faithfully checks in with his reports.  Don celebrated his 94 birthday with us at the 2007QMN picnic.  He is a charter member of QMN you can read what he has to say about its founding on General Information Page.

Lee Tippet W8RTN Lee received W8RTN in 1938 but didn't get into QMN until 1948.  He turned 90 on the last day of May 2008. He’s been married to Margaret for over 65 years and they have 2 sons. One is a ham N8ESW and lives in Virginia, the other son lives 5 miles north of Calumet in the Upper Peninsula. He has just experienced his first U QP winter. Both sons are retired.  Don retired from Buick Motor Division of GM in 1974.

Lee reminisces, “Back a few years it would be considered a quiet night if there were less than 12 QNI's per net and that was long before the book traffic we have today but I don't think the NTS would be as active as it is without today's book traffic. QMN ran 3 nets a day then, a slow and fast early session and a fast late session.

“W8FX "Tate" was one of the spark plugs of the net.  He had a spark gap rig that he would show and demonstrate on occasions. Some other old calls I remember are: W8NOH Lou Gerbert from Grand Rapids, "Doc" W8EU, he was a radio operator onboard a ship crossing Lake Michigan out of Ludington and he would ride along with us on his crossings. From around Lansing were Don, W8EGI and Joe Beljan, W8SCW. From the UP we had W8INX Hal from Grand Marias and WA8SYA in Iron Mountain. There were two brothers from around Ishpeming that I can't recall thecalls. W8NUL was from Torch Lake.From Flint, besides myself there were Sid W8WXO and Bill K8KMQ. From Mount Morris came RayWA8LXY and Clio Hal WA8PIM.  A few Detroit area hams I remember were George Goldstone W8AP, Stan W8YIQ, Andy W8IHX and Stan K8SB. I know I have left out a lot of calls but that is the best I can recall.

Ben Haney K8KV  I was born January 25, 1919 and raised on a farm during the depression and attended High School by operating an elevator for room and board at the Otsego Hotel in Jackson, Michigan.  Upon graduation in 1938, I joined the Navy.  After boot camp I boarded a newly commissioned Light Cruiser, the USS St. Louis as a deck hand.  They did not know what to do with me so I served on many ships.  When Pearl Harbor was struck I was in the Atlantic on a ship looking out to destroy mines.  Later I was on PT boat 73 in the Pacific.  We sailed to Alaska and traveled the length of the Aleutian Islands.

I did not go to radio school, so I learned CW and how to type from a book in the ship’s library.  In the radio room I listened to CW in my spare time and was eventually accepted in the radio gang with a Radioman First Class rating, RM1.  I began coping “fox schedules,” 5 letter code groups, sent by Washington to all the navy ships on an Underwood typewriter.  Towards the end of the war a few of us regular navy radiomen from the fleet were selected for radio material school along with reservists from M.I.T.  They graded by class average and with my high school background I barely graduated and upgraded my rank to radio technician.

After the war I left the navy (big mistake) to become a tool maker for fifty years. I met my wife later at a dance.  My first encounter with ham radio came in about 1992 at a square dance.  I met Steve W8VEY who after hearing about my Navy experience suggested I go to Dearborn for the first novice testing.  It had been a long time since my Navy days but I missed the 20 WPM by only one question, and received 13 wpm credit.  I also passed novice, technician and general. 

I became involved with Michigan QMN and Florida QFN for CW practice and traffic handling.  I still have a little problem copying in my head and since I don’t have a computer, I just write real fast with a stick and try reading my scribble.  Long live CW!