OVH Winter Field Day 2021

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40 M SSB

After a pause of about 10 years, OVH operated Winter Field Day at a cabin in Shenandoah River State Park, which qualified us for a bonus of 1,500 points. OVH members participating included Don, WA2SWX; Theresa, KG4TVM; Jimmy, WD4OJY; Cat, KM4PBD; Ron, K3FR; Gil, KM4OZH; Duane, KK4BZ and John, KG4NXT. Al, KB4BHB tried to reach us on 40m phone, but we could not hear him and he could not hear us. Most of the contacts were made on 40m phone and 20m CW. Don and Ron were the CW operators. Don was an intercept operator in a former life. Ron brought a cootie key and did 40m CW. We were using the N3FJP logging software for Winter Field Day and the two laptops were connected by an ethernet cable. The … Read more >>

Steve Frick, N4OGR Scholarship

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The Finance Committee and the OVH Board have created and approved a 2021 Scholarship in the name of Steve Frick, N4OGR. In light of our lack of income due to COVID, this scholarship will be funded primarily from contributions. Art, W1CRO has seeded the Steve Frick scholarship with a $500 pledge. The OVH will fund $100. We need you to fund the rest. The donation period ended Febuary 15, 2021. Thank you for your donations.

In memory of Steve Frick, N4OGR

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Also affectionately known as OGR June 18, 1950 to January 2, 2021 Steve has been a member of the OVH for decades! He has handled everything from the newsletter, programs for club meetings, ARES, Christmas parades, Field Day, outfitting the club trailer, club Vice President, Ham fest committee member, Quarter Master and all around friend to many. Our hearts go out to his wife, Jan, KE4TMW. RIP Steve, we will miss you.  

VP’s Corner

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By Robert Havasy - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21953854

As we enter the new year, I’m reminded of a quote my faculty adviser kept posted on his wall: “We are surrounded by insurmountable opportunity.” Opportunities abound at OVH. Here are some of them for the coming year. How about a position on the OVH leadership team? We’ll put together the slate this month with voting to follow in February.         Unfortunately, it looks like the ongoing pandemic will curtail our traditional outdoor activities for a while. No worries. Ham radio also excels as an indoor sport.     I still have some sets of antenna books from the club lending library to be checked out (Thanks Art!). Winter weather may not be the best for putting up HF antennas. What about that new VHF design you’ve … Read more >>

Pinkie’s Corner

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Hello everyone! Pinkie here! It’s been a long time since I wrote to my fellow “hams”. I have missed  everyone! Our activities have been limited this year as we all weather the COVID crisis. I sensed that Jeff was experiencing a little  too much cabin fever being cooped in his basement workshop (right), so I sent him outside with Peaches to watch for Santa! Peaches finally complained that she was freezing, and so they came inside! (Peaches was so disappointed that she didn’t see Santa!) Hmm … I needed a project to keep Jeff from going claustrophobic in the Bat Cave. Aha! Where’s that vacuum cleaner that needed fixing? Uh oh … I should  have been warned  when I saw his fascination with the news about the guy in the … Read more >>

OVH Holiday Party

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We had our annual OVH holiday party at Yorkshire restaurant on Dec 6.   Because of the virus, we wore masks when not eating.  In addition. the restaurant had blocked off every other table to help with social distancing.  We had the usual ham, turkey and venison chili for the main dish.  This year the venison was provided by Gil, KM4OZH, who had shot a 10 point buck.   There were a number of side dishes and desserts brought by OVH members. As usual, we also collected toys for tots.  Several members that could not attend provided toys including Gene, N4HFN; Wayne, N4HCR; Sandy, KM4OZH; Ray, KM4EKR and Al, KB4BHB.   We had two marines come to eat dinner and collect the toys for the toys for tots programs. There was a brief … Read more >>

Update : OVH Laptops will be used by shelter kids for classes

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"The Other Ken", KN4DD, delivering the OVH laptops

On October 27th, OVH once again stepped up for the community and donated 9 more computers. This brings our total to 20 usable computers donated. We are not counting the 4 donated laptops that were unusable and gifted to eAsset Solutions Computer and Electronics Recycling of Falls Church. A reminder: 11 laptops were donated by OVH to Gracing Spaces (https://www.gracingspaces.com) on August 31. They, in turn, presented those computers to Fairfax County Social Services for use by the children in their shelters. With regard to this round, seven of those nine computers were laptops. We would like to recognize Art, W1CRO; Butch, W4HJL; AL, KB4BHB; and John, KG4NXT for those laptops. The remaining two computers were Windows 10 desktop machines. Theresa, KG4TVM “re-gifted” these two machines after acquiring them from … Read more >>

VP’s Corner

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Thanksgiving on Combat Outpost Cherkatah Khowst Province, Afghanistan (U.S. Army)

The approaching holiday season and year’s end are traditionally a time for reflection and giving thanks for our many blessings. This Veteran’s Day, lets take a moment to express thanks to our veterans – the young ones who are in harm’s way today defending our freedoms, and those who have gone before, sometimes giving all.   American servicemembers have a proud history of being able to adapt, innovate, and overcome during the most challenging of circumstances. This Veteran’s Day I’ll cover a fascinating but little known part of that history – radios built by front line combatants and prisoners of war eager for the latest war news. Known collectively as “Foxhole Radios” their circuits embody a unique combination of clever innovation and elegance. (“Foxhole” refers to the fighting holes used … Read more >>