Subj : Amateur Radio Newsline (C) To : All From : Daryl Stout Date : Thu May 25 2023 21:52:38 BREAK HERE: Time for you to identify your station. We are the Amateur Radio Newsline, heard on bulletin stations around the world, including the KJ3LR repeater in Bradenton, Florida, on Fridays at 10 p.m. ** SILENT KEY: CONTESTER, DXER, BERNHARD "BEN" BUETTNER, DL6RAI NEIL/ANCHOR: An antenna accident has claimed the life of another ham - a well-known DXer and contester. We have those details from Jeremy Boot, G4NJH. JEREMY: A noted DXer, contester and CW enthusiast from Germany has become a Silent Key. Bernhard Buettner, DL6RAI, who was known to everyone as Ben, was killed following an accident while doing antenna work at his QTH in Aruba. Writing about his friend's death, Martin DL5RMH, said that they were working together to prepare to change one of the antenna masts when the mast Ben was tending to buckled unexpectedly and Ben fell to the ground. He could not be revived despite immediate first aid and the work of an ambulance rescue crew. Ben's own account of his ham radio life reflects a long and enduring love for active radio operation around the world. He fell in love with CW as a shortwave listener in 1978 after decoding a message he copied from a local ham. He worked to gain proficiency in Morse and by March of 1980, the 16- year-old radio enthusiast passed his license test, qualifying at 12 words per minute. An avid traveler, he operated from at least 45 countries around the globe and became a serious contester using CW, RTTY and the digital modes. Between 2002 and 2005, he was the WAE DX contest manager for the DARC. From 2007 to 2019 he was president of the prestigious Bavarian Contest Club. He purchased the QTH in Aruba in 2014 from another ham and was operating from there intermittently as P4/DL6RAI or P44X. His widow, Luise, is also an amateur, with the callsign DL2MLU. This is Jeremy, Boot G4NJH. NEIL/ANCHOR: Newsline takes this opportunity to remind listeners to please follow safety precautions always when doing antenna work, or any other radio activity, that presents a potential hazard such as this. (SOTA REFLECTOR, QRZ.COM) ** MASSACHUSETTS HAMS STEP UP FOR 'RELAY FOR LIFE' NEIL/ANCHOR: In one Massachusetts community, amateur radio is helping shine a brighter spotlight on a public event for cancer-awareness. We have those details from Andy Morrison, K9AWM. ANDY: While participants in the annual Relay for Life take thousands of steps around a college athletics track during a two-day fundraiser for cancer research, the Mohawk Amateur Radio Club will be taking steps too: These Massachusetts amateurs will be on the air as the two-day event steps off on Friday, June 9th, at 6 p.m. local time. They will be on the campus of the Mount Wachusett Community College, reaching out globally over the airwaves to raise awareness of the lifesaving work of the American Cancer Society. The hams will be on 20 and 40 meters during the day and will switch to 80 meters at night. As in the past, many of those answering the call of station N1WW are likely to have cancer survival stories of their own -- and some of the operators, such as Jack Burgoyne, W1PFZ, will be sharing theirs. Jack, and club president Kevin Erickson, N1ERS, spoke to the Gardner News website recently about the event and the club's history of providing support to it. With a big turnout of spectators expected as individuals and teams in the relay make their rounds on the track, the ham club will also be raising its own profile. Kevin said the club hopes people will take a moment to visit the club trailer and check out the radios that are carrying that important message around the world. This is Andy Morrison, K9AWM. (AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY, THE GARDNER NEWS) ** QRP DAY COMES TO IARU REGION 3 NEIL/ANCHOR: The power of QRP isn't always measured in watts or even milliwatts. Jim Meachen, ZL2BHF, explains. JIM M: It started as a long-ago suggestion from the New Zealand Association of Radio Transmitters, which suggested to IARU Region 3 in 1997 that QRP operation be given its day in the sun - literally. Since then, Region 3 societies have helped advance involvement in such QRP activities as QRP field days, QRP contests, instructions for QRP kit- building and publication of articles about QRP operating. That's all about to get even more intense on June 17th, which will once again be QRP Day throughout IARU Region 3. Writing to IARU member societies' directors and liaison officers, Yuki JH1NBN, Region 3 secretary, encouraged promotion of QRP operation, particularly when it is highlighted on that day. He wrote in his letter that QRP [quote] "offers advantages concerning, among others, the reduction of QRM on the amateur bands." [endquote] The day promises a powerful outcome. This is Jim Meachen, ZL2BHF. (IARU REGION 3) --- SBBSecho 3.20-Win32 * Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - Little Rock, Arkansas (618:250/33) .