Date: June 2023
Amount: $4,400

The Jacksonville Range Association serves their local community and promotes amateur radio by partnering with nonprofits and government agencies to aid in communications during times of disaster or for special events. Additionally, they own and maintain five repeaters in Duval County, FL. Each year, members of the association attend around 12 public events, with the end goal of promoting amateur radio and getting more people licensed. As the majority of these events are not amateur radio-related and thus are people’s first exposure to amateur radio, they stock their booth with flyers and have handheld transceivers to demonstrate; however, they lack a setup that allows visitors to observe what it is like to get on the air or to operate a radio themselves.

This grant will provide funding to build a portable communications system that does not rely on electricity from the grid or on internet coverage. As a result, they will have a setup that they can take to events and demonstrate the ability to make QSOs with amateur radio operators from around the world.

Learn more at https://w4rng.com/.