IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM YOUR NET MANAGER, K1MGH
This weekend we will hold our annual luncheon at Pappagallo’s in Swanzea NH. I anticipate that we will have approximately 20-25 members able to attend.
There is one point of business that I would like to pass on to those of you who cannot attend and I’d rather that you hear it from me, not someone else who was at the meeting.
I think all of us know that Mitch Mitchell, our Treasurer and long-time member of the NEWN, passed away on May 3, 2016 at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. When Mitch was made Treasurer by vote of the members he secured our position with the IRS as “non-reporting entity” and he established a “no-charge” checking account for us with Citizens Bank in Lawrence MA. Mitch told me that he made me a co-signator on the account and sent me an ATM card along with the password for the account.
At our meeting in 2014 Mitch reported that we had a balance of $560.84 in our account. At that meeting we raised an additional $150 with our auction. The following year our auction raised $100. There we no expenses submitted by me for reimbursement during that time.
When I heard about Mitch’s death I visited the local Citizens Bank in an attempt to transfer the authority over the account. The branch manager in Falmouth MA told me that the account had been closed out in 2013 and all funds withdrawn and that Mitch’s signature was the only authorized signature. I wrote to Mitch’s wife, Doris, expressing our condolences and asking if she had any records that Mitch kept about the account. I never heard back from Doris.
I have discussed this issue with our Net Controls, Bill Claflin, and Bruce Bohannon. We all agreed that there no point in pursuing an action aimed at recovering the apparently missing $850. It was also agreed that we should eliminate the position of Treasurer of the NEWN. I do not see any need to accumulate funds. There will be no expenses while I am Net Manager. I apologize for not overseeing our account during the time that Mitch was Treasurer.
IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM YOUR NET MANAGER, K1MGH
The fiscal year for the NEWN runs from May 1st to April 30th. Our Articles of Agreement requires that we hold an election for Net Manager and Net Treasurer every three years. That means we will have an election that will be completed before May 1, 2016.
I intend to run for reelection and I expect that Mitch, WB1CHU will be willing to run for reelection as Treasurer. That being said, if anyone wishes to run for either of these positions, please let me know, and neither Mitch or I will be offended! Votes will be solicited from all active members within the next few weeks.
Joseph Koskovics is N8JKO! Good job Joe!
Dick Wiklund, K1MGH, Net Manager
Well, it’s been a week or more and no one has identified the body of water in last week’s headed on our web site. It is the Great Salt Lake at sunset from Antelope Island State Park, a place “where the buffalo roam”!
I’ve posted a new banner of a body of water at sunset. The picture was taken from an island at the end of a long causeway out to the island during one of our trips. It is a large body of water. There will be a prize for anyone who can correctly identify this locations! Submit your guesses to me at richard@rawiklund.com.
No responses yet, so here’s a hint: it’s west of the Mississippi, south of Canada, and north of Mexico.
Spring has arrived and so have the daffodils! Let’s put Winter 2014-15 in the archives.
Well Jack Adams won the prize identifying last weeks puzzle location as that of Rob Noll in Unity NH. So, above is another! Let’s see who can identify this one. Send your answer to be by email at richard@rawiklund.com. [no one got it right]
Every once in a while I’m going to change the banner at the top of our website. Today, this is a contest: everyone is eligible except the owner of the QTH shown. You have to guess the State, Town, and Owner of the snow-engulfed home shown above. The entry that comes the closest will receive a prize at the NEWN luncheon, but you don’t need to be present to win.
Dick Wiklund, K1MGH, Net Manager
Important notice: The past few days have seen incredibly difficult band conditions and we have had to rely on a few stations for multiple relays of weather reports. I think it is important to get as many check ins as we can within our 60 minute net time. Therefore, I am going to ask the net controls to extend the time they have for receiving check ins when we have very poor band conditions and to do so at the expense of reading the rundown at 6:18 or 6:20 AM. A shortened rundown may include just the roster numbers of those stations who have been acknowledged by the Net Control.
Dick Wiklund, K1MGH, Net Manager
The New England Weather Net was founded in 1955 as a means of communication in times of need. There are close to 60 active members located from as far north as Nova Scotia, as far south as Florida, and as far west as Idaho. Most of the members are in the New England and Mid-Atlantic regions.
We meet six mornings a week, Monday through Saturday, on 3.905 MHz starting at 5:30 AM, Eastern Time, and sign off at 6:30 AM Eastern Time. Stations should respond to the request of the net control for additional check ins with either their number or their call sign.
We invite any ham radio operator with an interest in weather to join us, all are welcome! Once a ham radio operator has “checked in” with us on a consistent basis, he or she will be assigned a New England Weather Net number.
Our format is to report current temperature, barometer reading and trend, wind direction and speed, sky cover on a basis of 0 (clear) to 10 (overcast), the high and low temperatures for the past 24 hours, accumulated liquid precipitation for the past 24 hours (rain and melted snow), new snow depth and total snow depth. Again, all are welcome with as little as current temperature and an estimate of sky cover.
In August, Dick, K1MGH, was elected Net Manager and he developed an Agreement on how the Net would be managed going forward. The Agreement included a new position, Secretary/Treasurer, and the membership approved Dick’s suggestion of appointing Mitch, WB!CHU, to that position. The Net is extremely grateful to Bill Claflin, SWL, who served the group well as the prior Net Manager.