Fire Prevention Week Special Event

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From the 5th October through 11th October, a special annual event will take place promoting fire safety during Fire Prevention Week, with the theme being Lithium-ion battery fire safety where we mention a safety tip with the contacts.

The following stations usually participate: KF2IRE, N1F through N9F, and VA3FIRE from Ontario and a printable certificate is available from hamfire.com where the event information is.

The lead station is N4F in Gainesville FL. VA3FIRE is a wildcard station that can help with earning that certificate. The various stations spot themselves on DX Summit and as it is not a contest stations can be found on most HF bands working SSB and some FT-8.

Fire Prevention Week (Facebook) - https://www.facebook.com/groups/hamfire/posts/758888044559907/

Two WW2-Era Code-Related Events - One For Navajo Code Talkers, Another For Enigma Machine

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Two WW2-Era Code-Related Events - One For Navajo Code Talkers, Another For Enigma Machine

There was a time when US history lessons did not contain any mention of the Navajo Code Talkers because the presence of these brave Marines was still considered classified information by the US government. All of that changed – and now for many years the 14th of August has been designated as Navajo Code Talkers Day. A group of proud amateur radio operators are taking several days to honour this special unit of brave Marines who served in the US military during the Second World War.

Few of these hams could be prouder than Herb Goodluck N7HG, whose late father, John V. Goodluck, had been one of the Marines who used their own Navajo language to craft a wartime code that could not be broken.

Herb will be among those calling QRZ from the 10th to the 15th, using the callsign N7C. Operators will be using CW, phone and FT-8. Additional details, including operating frequencies, can be found on QRZ.com

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ARRL Field Day 2025 Saw Growth in Participants and Entries

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The numbers are in and showing growth. 2025 ARRL Field Day showed an increase in both participants and entries, compared to 2024. According to ARRL Contest Program Manager Paul Bourque, N1SFE, 4,369 entries detailed 31,785 people taking part in in the event. That’s up from last year. 

“There’s a growing interest in ham radio, especially after last year’s hurricane season and other high-profile situations in which radio has been essential. ARRL Field Day serves as a great chance to get engaged with your local amateur radio community.”
— ARRL Contest Program Manager Paul Bourque, N1SFE

The uptick in numbers may not be complete, as there’s still an opportunity for a few more entries to be added. “Occasionally, a club will need to update their entry. We work with them to make sure it is correct,” said Bourque. 

Field Day participants should check that all the required supporting documentation related to their entries has been received by checking the Entries Received web page at field-day.arrl.org/fdentriesrcvd.php. If the status of your entry is listed as Pending Documents, one or more of the required documents still needs to be submitted to complete your entry. Entrants may use the link provided in the confirmation email they received to upload additional documents or to modify their entries. Currently, 223 entries are listed as being incomplete. Updates to existing entries will be accepted until 29th August 2025. If you’re having difficulty completing your Field Day entry or have any questions, contact fieldday@arrl.org.

On the public outreach front, final measurement numbers of the media coverage earned by amateur radio public information volunteers have been tallied. ARRL Public Relations and Outreach Manager Sierra Harrop, W5DX, reports that the total ad value equivalence (AVE) of 2025 ARRL Field Day is $37.9 million.

“We had a tremendous response from clubs and ARRL public information volunteers this year on the heels of Ham Radio Open House into ARRL Field Day. The ARRL Public Relations Committee prepared resources to help the volunteers succeed, but they really took it to the next level in communities across the country.”
— ARRL Public Relations and Outreach Manager Sierra Harrop, W5DX

AVE measures the amount of money that would have to be spent to buy ads in media and social media to replace the news coverage volunteers secured with press outreach. The $37.9M figure measures only mentions of ARRL Field Day from January 1 – July 31 of each year. In 2024, the figure was $20M, and $18M in 2023. Harrop hopes to see further strengthening of public information volunteers leading into 2026, which ARRL has designated as the Year of the Club. Hams seeking to serve as an ARRL public information volunteer may express interest to their ARRL Section Manager.