Richfield Amateur Radio group looks for members to help with city emergencies
By Allison Maass
Murphy News Service
The Richfield Amateur Radio Club is looking for new members to help revive the club and provide service to the city during emergencies.
The club needs an infusion of new blood after the retirement of previous members – some with more than 35 years with club.
“It’s generally a city club focused on the advancement and enjoyment of amateur radio,” Charlie O’Brien, Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) and CitizenCorp coordinator for Richfield Public Safety, said.
The club wants to encourage the use of amateur radio in Richfield and surrounding cities and promote the use of radio for public service, a mission statement on its website said.
Amateur radio has been a hobby for people, and the importance of this club is “getting people together to share that spirit,” Grant Gartland, co-founding director of the Richfield Amateur Radio Club, said. He has been a licensed radio operator since April.
“I found it as a way to help out my community,” Gartland said.
About 12 people showed up to an informational meeting held a few weeks ago, Gartland said. The majority of people interested are already licensed radio operators and a couple of people are in the process of getting their licenses.
CERT is filling in for the club by forming the Richfield CERT Communications Team.
Richfield Public Safety has ordered new digital repeaters to show support for the new communications team and help refresh the old club.
There will be evaluations done in the next few months on the rest of the equipment to make sure everything is working correctly.
Members of both groups will also be using the Richfield Mobile Operations Center, which is a Winnebago recreational vehicle with a dispatch center in the back that is used in emergency situations, O’Brien said.
The communications team will use the mobile dispatch center beginning this month for training at 1 p.m. on the second Sunday of the month, and the amateur radio club will use it at 8 p.m. on the fourth Thursday of the month. Each group will use the dispatch center to hold a “net,” which is like an on-air meeting between radio operators that allows them to pass information along during emergencies, Gartland said.
The Bloomington Amateur Radio Club is also helping bring new life to the club. O’Brien said they have been working for nine months with Hennepin County Emergency Management to form a regional communication crew.
Richfield residents have the opportunity to be members of the amateur radio club or communications team, but the communications team requires people to go through CERT basic training and be a member, O’Brien said. CERT members are also assist in emergency events, such as serving as volunteer firefighters and police reserve officers.
“We just look forward to training and working with anybody who wants to be a part of the amateur radio club or CERT Communications team,” O’Brien said.
Richfield citizens with an interest in amateur radio and who are licensed operators can find information on how to become a member at richfieldradio.com.
For residents who want to join the CERT Communications Team, the next training session is set for Friday-Sunday, May 1-3. Those interested should email O’Brien at [email protected] for information..
Reporter Allison Maass is studying journalism at the University of Minnesota.
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One thought on “Old radio club getting new life”
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