Andy,
I read your post and was very interested in what you had to say on the subject of emergency services. Although my interests in Amateur Radio are more technical and experimental in nature, emergency services are an important aspect of the Amateur service and I applaud your efforts to reinvigorate that aspect of SBARC and ARES.
The potential benefits of a relationship with hams are often overlooked in an era of expansive digital networks both wired and wireless. Although we know that these networks will never be as resilient and reliable as ham radio, most non-hams don’t. It seems that the Club and ARES has an identity crisis in this area and so we are left with an ARES group that gets few if any calls to activation and a community of SBARC hams whose diverse interests have drifted to other aspects of the hobby.
However, we still have a vibrant volunteer program with hams who are willing to get up early, stay up late and be out all day supporting local events. This happens because of the leadership of Rick, KG6VLB. and the dependable group of volunteer hams that, under his leadership, provide invaluable communications resources to local organizations.
So, it seems that the Club has the people, the talent and the equipment to perform similar support functions in the event of an emergency, we just need volunteer emergency services leadership to coordinate these programs, make new inroads and recruit from the pool of ham-volunteers who are clearly willing to help when they feel they are needed and appreciated.
Any organization is only as good as its members and we need someone from our incredibly diverse and talented group to step forward to take the reins for a new generation of emergency services. This means someone who will handle the logistics of dealing with served agencies, put together programs and recruit volunteers who feel that their efforts are appreciated and needed, just as Rick’s volunteers are rewarded by supporting road races and parades.
A group such as an emergency services support team needs a volunteer leader who is passionate about the task and willing to put in the time to organize and support meaningful programs that are truly valued by the served agencies. Volunteers seek opportunities that are rewarding and productive and the reward for volunteering is that feeling of being appreciated and needed by both the volunteer organization (SBARC) and the served organization/agency (SB County).
There is no doubt that SBARC needs stronger ties with SB emergency response agencies if it is to remain a relevant emergency resource. The solution will not come from just a board mandate. We have no paid staff to be assigned to the initiative and to carry out such a mandate. The solution, as is the case with all SBARC initiatives, is with assembling the right volunteer leadership for the task. We need a strong volunteer leader who’s personal interests align with that mission to step forward to lead the charge, organize the programs, recruit the team and effect the changes needed.
I don’t read the silence on this list as our Club community's lack of a desire for such an initiative to take shape or lack of interest in helping or serving in a well-organized emergency services program. I think the silence represents the inability of the readers (myself included) to take up the herculean task of revitalizing such an effort (I personally don’t have the time nor do I know where I would start if it did). Until a passionate individual with the time and talents to lead this effort steps forward, I am afraid that it will remain an area of the Club in need of improvement.
LCM
Levi C. Maaia, K6LCM
www.levi.maaia.com
twitter.com/levimaaia
805.604.5384 Tel.
877.239.4146 Fax
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Ok Folks I am done, the last post I put up
here talked about opportunities with the County, and guess what! I
got 2 replies both off list, one from Rod who is now in Arizona so
not able to assist and one from a new comer who wants to be active
in “serving others” NOBODY else, not even the club president or
anyone.
So I will draw my pleas to a close. We had a
golden opportunity to be relevant again, but nobody has the
interest to make it happen. I will not post about this again and I
will also not have any of my articles posted on this site
either. If any of you are interested in my commentaries, my blog
(Tell it Like it is) or my Public Safety Advocate weekly news
summary and articles dealing with Public Safety communications,
please feel free to go to my web-site and sign up (www.andrewseybold.com) they are
all free. . I will continue to support W1UUQ with the technical
aspects of the sites and what we are doing to make them better but
I will not ever bring up the idea of getting back into the good
graces of the County and actually reestablishing ham radio as a
relevant disaster communications possibility.
Andy W6AMS
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