MADRID —Members of the North Country Amateur Radio Club will participate in the national amateur radio Field Day exercise on June 28 and 29 at the St. Lawrence County Power & Equipment Museum, 755 State Hwy 345.

Since 1933, ham radio operators across North America have established temporary stations in public locations during Field Day to demonstrate the science and skill of amateur radio. The event is open to the public, and all are encouraged to attend.

Field Day highlights how amateur radio operates reliably under any conditions and from almost any location to create independent communications networks.

“Ham radio functions completely independent of the Internet or cell phone infrastructure, can interface with laptops or smartphones, and can be set up almost anywhere in minutes. That’s the beauty of amateur radio during a communications outage,” said Sierra Harrop, W5DX, Public Relations and Outreach Manager for ARRL The National Association for Amateur Radio®. “In today’s connected world, ham radio remains one of the best ways for people to learn about electronics, physics, meteorology, and numerous other scientific disciplines, and is a huge asset to any community during disasters or emergencies if the standard communication infrastructure goes down. Ham radio is also a great sandbox for tomorrow’s technology leaders to get hands-on with STEM concepts,” Harrop added.

Anyone may become a licensed amateur radio operator. There are more than 750,000 licensed hams in the United States, as young as 9 and as old as 100. With clubs such as the North Country Amateur Radio Club, it’s easy for anyone to get involved right here in St. Lawrence County.

For more information, contact:
Matt Denney, KA2AUB
Vice President, North Country Amateur Radio Club
  ka2aub@yahoo.com
  (315) 775-3901
 www.arrl.org/what-is-ham-radio