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SFTARC Newsletter - February 2026

SFTARC Newsletter - February 2026

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‍February ‍ ‍News


President's Corner - February 2026

wb0cnk

     The club is off to a great start with a likely record number of 23 students in our Extra Class License sessions this year, which are being held at the Salvation Army in Olathe. The Kansas Day Special Event was enjoyed by members who operated from their home stations this year, as the poor weather precluded the usual festivities at the Sawyer Antenna Facility.  Club members also had a great time supporting Kansas's turn at operating as station W1AW/Ø from February 4th-10th, answering calls from across the US as part of the ongoing ARRL America250 Worked All States this year. Our thanks to member Jeff, KSØJD, who coordinated the entire Kansas on the air operation. Watch for the second (last) opportunity to operate later in the fall.
     Take time to enjoy club camaraderie this year by participating in club activities listed on our website calendar. https://sftarc.org/index.php/calendar-jevent  The Tallgrass Prairie Preserve POTA and Ensorfest are quickly approaching in May. Be sure to help fill the positions our club is responsible for during EnsorFest, as well as being a docent during the months our club conducts the tours at the museum. This is a great way to learn about the rich amateur radio history of the Ensor family. A planning committee for Field Day in June will begin forming at the March business meeting. Everyone is invited to share your ideas and be involved in this enjoyable outdoor event. 

     I encourage you to take advantage of the trips the club is coordinating for travel to some of the best regional conventions and hamfests held throughout the year. A sign-up sheet was started at the February meeting and will be available at breakfasts and meetings.

You can also sign up here:    Hamfest Signup    

     Watch for new activities at Ensor Park and Museum throughout the year. They may take the form of demonstrations of satellites, military radio gear, antennas, QRP, or other topics.  I encourage you to operate in public service events this year. This not only supports our community, but it is a great way to learn about emergency communications

     Our member Ray, KØRSE, has provided a listing of Public Service event dates and times as well as who to contact if you're interested.

Click here to view the list:  KC Public Service Events List    


AuthorG McCarville (WBØCNK)
Publishing dateTuesday, 17 February 2026

Meeting Notes - February 2026

sft-logo

Executive Summary:

      The main topic of the meeting was related to moving our club website to a new web hosting service. This may mean the site will be down for 1 to 2 days as the site domain name is updated across the internet. The next Tech Night is on February 26th at 7:30 pm on 3D printing presented by Howard. The next business meeting is on March 14th at 8 am. 

MEETING CALLED TO ORDER:

       President George, WBØCNK, called the meeting to order at 7:30 AM CST on February 14, 2026. A total of 25 members attended the meeting. There were 16 members in person and 9 attended via zoom.

 

SECRETARY-TREASURER REPORT: 

      Marty gave a short treasurer report. Marty provided an update on club expenses and the current bank balance. Jason provided a secretary report. Jason has been working on filing the N-990 form with the IRS. But with the 501(c)(3) application we moved from calendar year to a fiscal year filing. The next time we can file a N-990 form is in November 2026. 

 AGENDA ITEMS:

Clothing and Badge Orders [Jason – KFØISL, George -WB0CNK]

      George has a few items that have not been distributed. If you have not collected the items you ordered, reach out to George. George also ordered some extra shirts. If you would like a club shirt feel free to reach out to George to see if he has an item in your size. He has a limited number. Marty is working on putting together a new badge order. If you would like to order a badge, please reach out to Marty. 

SFTARC Website Changes [Greg – KIØKK]

      The club has decided to move to a new web provider. The current one does not support the currently supported version of Joomla. The new web hosting service will cost around $200 per year for three years. George held a board meeting to talk about the different website options. Greg put a lot of time looking into the different options. The club is also planning to move to Google Workspace. The Workspace account will have multiple administrators. This is better than using Greg's personal Google drive for the club.  

Ensor Foundation [Marty, KEØPEZ Jeff- KSØJD, Howard- NØAZ]

      MEMO is planning ENSORFEST '26. The event is planned for May 9, 2026, and will end around 5 pm. Jeff is organizing the event this year. There will be three bands that will come out. Some car clubs will come to show their cars. There is a plan to have a fox hunt in the morning. If you know someone who owns a food truck feel free to reach out to Jeff. We currently do not have a food truck arranged. If you would like to help volunteer for ENSORFEST '26 please reach out to Jeff. 

Report on Kansas Day Jan 24th SFTARC On-the-Air [Trig-KCØRPY, George - WBØCNK]

      The club had two SSB stations running and logged 111 contacts. One challenge was that when ARRL Winter Field Day started it was hard to make contacts. Marty helped submit the logs to LOTW. 

Report on W1AW/Ø America250 Worked All States [Jeff -KSØJD, George - WBØCNK]

      Jeff coordinated this ARRL event for the state of Kansas. Jeff logged around 700 contacts, and he estimated that total contacts by the 10 Kansas stations operating as W1AW/Ø to be about 1400. This event will take place again in November. Jeff would like to communicate about this event earlier next time to get more people involved. 

Report on Feb 7TH Mine Creek Hamfest [Greg - KIØKK]

      Greg reported that this was a small hamfest that went well.  There were meet and greet activities. 

Tallgrass Prairie Preserve Planning POTA [Jim – KØNK]

     Jim has reached out to Ranger Heather and has not heard back from her. We are hoping to schedule the event in May 2026.   

Repeater Update [Jim – KØNK]

     Jim gave a repeater update.   

Tech Night [George – WBØCNK]

      The next Tech Night is on February 26, 2026. The topic is on 3D printers by Howard, NØAZ. 

2026 SFTARC Ham Radio Classes [Jim – KØNK] - Extra Class:Date / Location / Status

      The ham class will finish up on February 28th. As of this business meeting the class is on week 6 of 8 scheduled classes. Many of the students are dedicated. Some are printing the pdf of all the slides for reference. This can be upward of 100 slides. The high level of student involvement and interest has made it fun to teach the class.  

Upcoming Hamfests – See Website Calendar [George - WBØCNK]

  • Ozarkcon 2026: March 26th-28th - 3-day convention; seminars & kits; Branson, MO
  • Green County OK Hamfest: April 10th-11th. Claremore, OK
  • Ham Bash KC 2026: April 25th 8AM-2PM, Raytown High School 6019 Blue Ridge Blvd. Raytown, MO
  • Hamvention: May 15th-17th. Dayton, OH
  • Reno County Hamfest:  Aug 8th; Hutchinson, KS
  • Huntsville, AL Hamfest: Aug 22nd-23rd
  • Nixa, MO Hamfest: TBD 2026 (was Nov. 18, 2025)

      Notes: George would like to coordinate travel to hamfests. This is in an effort to make it easier for people to attend these events. George is planning to bring a clip board for people to sign up for these hamfests and arrange if interested in riding together or caravaning.  

You can also sign up here:    Hamfest Signup 

Christmas Party [Jim – KØNK]

      Jim has booked the Gardener Senior Center for the Friday before Christmas, December 18, 2026.   

Update on Equipment From Dave Cochran, KBØVRA [Jim – KØNK]

      Jim is planning to work on this more once the extra class is completed. 

Members Who Would Enjoy A Card Or a Visit:

  • Mike Lane, KEØCIS, at: Good Samaritan Olathe Medical Campus

ADJOURN:

After a motion and a second, the meeting was adjourned around 8:05 am.


AuthorJ Gaumer (KFØISL)
Publishing dateTuesday, 17 February 2026

Intern on the Job at Ensor

Ensor Intern

     Now in pursuit of a master's degree in Museum Studies from the University of Oklahoma Online, Attisen McCorkle of Kansas City, Missouri has begun an internship at Olathe's Ensor Park and Museum that will have her working at the city-owned historic site through May as part of the ongoing effort to adequately preserve and protect the various photographs, letters, documents and other artifacts that comprise the valuable collection there.

     According to Marty Peters, KE0PEZ, the secretary of the Olathe Ensor Foundation, the treasurer of the Santa Fe Trail Amateur Radio Club and a regular tour guide for Ensor Park and Museum, Attisen will need to log a total of 135 hours as an intern to satisfy the University of Oklahoma Online's requirements for the degree she is after. Attisen is pictured here as she works with Marty the afternoon of Sunday, February 8, Super Bowl Sunday, in the kitchen of the Ensor home, but she is planning to spend the better part of her Mondays, not Sundays, at Ensor Park and Museum in the weeks to come.

     Attisen is already familiar with Olathe having once worked at Mahaffie Stagecoach Stop & Farm. She has also worked at Constitution Hall in Topeka.

     Currently employed at Kaleidoscope in Kansas City, Attisen holds a bachelor's degree in Art History and Cultural Anthropology from Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska. She earned that degree in 2024 and, according to Marty, was able to study abroad in Glasgow, Scotland for six months during her junior year at Creighton.   


AuthorRick Nichols
Publishing dateTuesday, 17 February 2026

‍Trail Bytes‍ ‍ ‍ ‍

Chasing Radiosondes or Radios from Heaven!

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The SFTARC Tech Night for January 2026 was a presentation by Mike Laney (KEØGHU) on Chasing Radiosondes. Mike provided details about the devices used, web sites used for tracking and data provided...


Publishing dateFriday, 30 January 2026

Upcoming Events‍

26 Feb 2026;
07:30PM - 08:30PM
Tech Night: 3-D Printers
14 Mar 2026;
08:00AM -
SFTARC business meeting
26 Mar 2026;
08:00AM - 12:00AM
OzarkCon (4-States QRP)
26 Mar 2026;
08:00AM - 12:00AM
OzarkCon (4-States QRP)
26 Mar 2026;
08:00AM - 12:00AM
OzarkCon (4-States QRP)
29 Mar 2026;
07:30PM - 08:30PM
Tech Night 7:30PM - Chasing Weather Radiosondes

Club Contact Information

‍Direct article comments to the newsletter editor Greg Wolfe at: gregwolfe16@gmail.com

 

Contact us at: ks0ks@sftarc.org

 

Club Contact List


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