MEETING TO ORDER:
President Jeff Darby, KS0JD, called to order the November, 2020, business meeting of the SFTARC at 8:00 AM. This is the annual business meeting required by the SFTARC Constitution and By-laws. The meeting was conducted via Zoom. A total of 23 members introduced themselves with their call signs. There were no guests.
SECRETARY-TREASURER REPORT:
Marty Peters, KE0PEZ, gave the annual report of the Secretary-Treasurer. He reported the club's bank account balance. Deposits since the October business meeting totaled $70 for two individual membership and one family membership. There were no disbursements. The check from the City of Olathe is expected to arrive in the next several weeks. The Mo-Kan Council still has not cashed our club's membership check. Marty will send another check. The repeater fund balance remains the same as last month. The club now has 75 members in good standing. The financial condition of the club continues to be good. Please refer to Appendix A below for details of the annual report of the Secretary-Treasurer.
Repeater Relocation [Jim Andera – K0NK]
The repeater committee is still in search mode for a repeater site The Olathe Medical Center hospital is still on the list, but other sites are of interest. Some of the potential sites would require us to provide some kind of radio hut. The prices of commercially available units are discouragingly high. Jim gave a synopsis of pros and cons of some of the sites that are under consideration. Ralph N0KC suggested putting our own tower and hut on top of the artificial mound that was built along US 56 near the New Century Airport in Gardner. He commented that the mound was built several years ago and should be stable enough for a tower. It is not on any of the approaches to the runways, so the proximity of the airport should not be a problem. Gil suggested considering the Gardner water tower. Gardner city officials would likely recognize the value such a repeater system as a public service. In addition, a number of SFTARC club members live in Gardner. Jim said that he was still hoping to find a good location in Olathe. However, if a site in Olathe is not found, a site in Gardner should be considered.
Several comments were made concerning the radio hut. New commercial huts range from $5K to $12K. Lower cost structures include hunting blinds, Tuffy sheds, and 8.5' x10' shipping containers. Comments were made concerning the security, heating, cooling, and esthetics of each type of structure.
Duke W0QQ showed a recent picture of the water tower being raised near the junction of K-10 and K-7. It would make a good site for the repeaters.
Zoom Award Ceremony Honoring Larry Woodworth
In spite of the pandemic and its dampening effect on in-person gatherings, an award ceremony was held on Saturday, October 24, to honor Larry Woodworth for his long service as Director of the Ensor Park and Museum. Although Larry has not dived into the new world of internet, WI-FI, and associated technological wizardry, Marty KE0PEZ and spouse Kyoko were able to set up the necessary connections so that Larry, his wife Pat, and Marty could connect from the Woodworth living room via teleconference with a number of dignitaries, friends, and well-wishers. Randy Schultz, Chairman of the Board of the Mo-Kan Council of Amateur Radio Clubs, presented Larry with a beautiful trophy and a framed certificate of appreciation. (Marty read the inscriptions and physically presented them to Larry.) The trophy was an operational D-104 "Silver Eagle" microphone mounted on a walnut base hand-crafted by David Albright KE0DSV. In addition to the trophy and certificate from the Mo-Kan Council, a letter from City of Olathe Mayor John Bacon commended Larry for his service to amateur radio and the community. Representatives from the SFTARC, the JCRAC, the ARRL Kansas Section, and others expressed their warm wishes and appreciation to Larry.
Larry was caught by surprise as this virtual ceremony unfolded around him, and he was genuinely pleased that the efforts he had poured into bringing the story of Marshall and Loretta Ensor to the public had inspired many others to do the same.
Perks for Ensor Volunteers [Jeff - KS0JD]
It has been the custom of the SFTARC to reward those club-members who volunteer for duty 4 or more times in a tour season by waiving their dues in the following year. Joe explained that this custom had been instituted in order to secure adequate participation of tour guides who had experience in giving tours. It was moved and seconded to eliminate this practice. The motion carried unanimously. Ideas were expressed about whether some form of reward should be offered for those who volunteer for tour duty and about what form such a reward should take. Since we have until May to develop a club policy on this matter, President Jeff moved to table the discussion for the present. The motion was seconded and passed unanimously.
Web Hosting [Greg Wolfe – KI0KK]
There are no known web site issues, everything is operating normally. Please contact Greg if you detect a bug or problem. There are no planned changes. There will be some small expenditures anticipated in the coming year. The web form for the ham-class registration is operational but not available for public use.
SFTARC Ham Class 2021 [Jeff - KS0JD]
Although most sessions will be virtual via Zoom, one or a few sessions will be in-person, including the initial session in order to distribute the books. We are still looking for a suitable site for these sessions. Jeff will check with the Olathe Public Library and Jim will check with the Gardner Senior Citizen's Center to assess options. Low-power FM transmitters are available that make possible holding "quasi" in-person sessions in a parking lot. There was a discussion of when to cut off registrations for the class.
2020 SFTARC Christmas Party [Jeff - KS0JD]
Due to inauspicious pandemic circumstances, the club will not hold a Christmas party this year.
Election of SFTARC officers for 2021 [Jeff - KS0JD]
The President, Vice-President, and Secretary-Treasurer (Jeff, Larry, and Marty, respectively) indicated their desire to serve in 2021. There were no other nominations for any of the three offices. It was moved and seconded that the 2020 officers be elected to serve in their present offices in 2021. The motion passed unanimously.
OTHER BUSINESS:
There was no other business this month.
ADJOURN:
Following a motion and a voice vote, the meeting was adjourned about 8:40 AM.
Appendix A - Annual report of the SFTARC Secretary-Treasurer
NOVEMBER 14, 2020
1. Current checking account balance and balance one year ago were reported
This checking account balance represents the total of two club funds that can be described as the general fund and the repeater fund. The only expenditure in 2020 that was not a regular annual expenditure was an amount to purchase a power supply to be available for portable use with the club IC-7300.
2. Budget
Anticipated receipts and disbursements for the coming year were reported. The anticipated increase in the amount available during the coming year for any unanticipated expenditures or for equipment purchases that would benefit the club is ~$600.
3. Tax status
SFTARC is a 501c7 tax-exempt non-profit organization. It is listed in Exempt Organizations Business Master File Extracts. One of our members, Ruth Vano, registers SFTARC with the Kansas Secretary of State in May of each year, and I submit the required filing to the IRS early in each calendar year (usually in January).
4. Members
The SFTARC currently includes 56 individual members and nine family groups containing a total of 19 family members. This gives a total of 75 members in good standing, 44 of whom are members of ARRL. Four members are exempt from club dues because they operate the club repeaters. Two are exempt for providing legal services. One is exempt because of his long service as director of the Ensor Park and Museum. One is exempt because he is a youth. Three are exempt for participating in the 2020 ham class. Not counting the students in the 2020 ham class (who may or may not continue membership in SFTARC), the club gained 11 new members in 2020.
5. Quorum
The average attendance at the last 12 monthly business meetings of the club is 18.8, with a high of 23 and low of 12, which occurred last January during an ice storm. The quorum for the coming year is 13 (18.8 x 2/3 rounded up).
6. Club events
The SFTARC was active with events in 2020 in spite of the dampening effect of the pandemic. We got off to a good start with Kansas Day, but then the Tallgrass Prairie and WW1USA events were cancelled. Although the “flavor” of both Field Day and the Kansas QSO Party was different than usual, they were successful events and we enjoyed them.
7. The SFTARC continues to provide much service not only to its members but also to the radio-amateur community and to the public.
