Two annual awards have been established within the New Mexico Section to recognize a League member and ARRL-affiliated club within our ranks for their service and accomplishments. ARRL members across the state submitted their nominations, and it gives me pleasure to announce this year’s recipients: David Jorgensen WD5COV of Deming and the Sacramento Mountains Radio Club.
Here is a thumbnail sketch of our recipients from their nominations. Both will be recognized and awarded a plaque at the ARRL New Mexico State Convention (Albuquerque Duke City Hamfest, https://dukecityhamfest.org). Please join me in congratulating them!
2016 ARRL NEW MEXICO SECTION HAM OF THE YEAR
Dave WD5COV is a Life member of the ARRL and has been a ham for 39 years. Dave’s has contributed to the New Mexico and greater amateur radio communities in several ways. Most notably, he has devoted his time, funding, and passion towards activating several DX entities, some of them extremely rare, as a member of their DXpedition teams. These activations have included 3D2R (Rotuma Island) in 2011, 7O6T (Yemen) in 2012, 3D2C (Conway Reef) in 2012, E30FB (Eritrea) 2015, VP8STI (South Sandwich Island) in 2016, and VP8SGI (South Georgia Island) in 2016.
Dave serves as Treasurer and CFO of the Intrepid DX Group whose mission entails, among other things, conducting and supporting amateur radio Expeditions, conducting scientific research exploring electromagnetic wave propagation, and promoting interest and proficiency in amateur radio communications with respect to improving operating and technical skills. Dave is also a Life member of the International DX Association, which is a non-profit organization devoted to the enhancement of amateur radio, worldwide peace, and friendship.
He founded the Mimbres Valley Radio Club, based in the Deming, New Mexico area in 2010 which, through Dave’s leadership and support, has sponsored plaque awards for the New Mexico QSO Party since at least 2012. Dave has mentored many hams and shared his knowledge of DXing and operating skill by conducting presentations at ham radio events including the ARRL New Mexico State Convention (Albuquerque Duke City Hamfest) and the ARRL Rocky Mountain Division Convention. Dave is devoted to DXing, enabling others to log rare entities, and teaching others to become great operators.
2016 ARRL NEW MEXICO SECTION CLUB OF THE YEAR
The Sacramento Mountains Radio Club was organized in 2005 to provide repeaters on the 2-meter band at high points in the Sacramento Mountains of Southern New Mexico, and has three repeaters that cover the majority of the mountains. These repeaters help Firefighters and other emergency personnel to coordinate firefighting activities. The second purpose is to help travelers in the mountains who might become stranded due to vehicle and other traveling troubles.
The club actively seeks members of local Fire Stations to get their ham licenses so that they might use ham repeaters in addition to their fire frequencies to better communicate with their stations and each other. The club actively looks for candidates (young and old) to train and test with testing sessions at least 6 times yearly and training sessions when needed.
The Sacramento Mountains Radio Club also supports local events. For the last 2 years, the club has supported the “Cactus to Clouds Race” with communications at approximately 11 aid stations and the start and finish lines. This race is a foot race from Oliver Lee State Park south of Alamogordo and runs up through Dog Canyon and on to Sunspot Observatory, then along the rim trail to Zenith Park in Cloudcroft. It is a very grueling race traversing approximately 30 miles and an altitude range from about 3500 feet to over 9000 feet elevation.
The club has excellent participation in Field Day each year and sets up camp at Zenith Park in Cloudcroft. Last year, the club racked up enough points to take third place in the state and in the low 300’s nationally.
