I’ve been a ham radio enthusiast for a long time — long enough that the words ‘estate planning’ no longer make me change the subject. Not that I’m in any hurry to go, but a timeline has been crossed where we’ve started working on a Last Will, funeral planning, where we will be buried, things like that. Part of that thinking also includes amateur radio. It’s always been a significant part of my life and I want the hobby to continue for a long time after my Key has fallen Silent.

The decision to support ARRL - the national association for amateur radio for the long haul was an easy one to make.

The organization offers many avenues for charitable giving that helps fund its valuable works. I’ve been a Life Member for long enough that I’m beginning to feel like something of a freeloader and it’s time to begin paying it forward by becoming a member of the ARRL Diamond Club:

“The ARRL Diamond Club is an annual giving program for ARRL’s most committed members. Providing critical support to protect and promote Amateur Radio above what dues alone can cover”

Amateur radio was the impetus for my career in engineering, and my long-ago search for someone to administer my Novice test led me to a fellow whose daughter set me up on a blind date with the woman who would become my wife! I don’t suppose I’m the only person whose wedding bells were rung due to amateur radio, but I know very few others whose life has been so impacted by this hobby as mine. Radio has been a constant companion during most of my life so a desire to give something back doesn’t seem at all unusual.

I’ve been generous with individual DXpeditions along with several DX organizations these last few years. Now it’s time to have the ARRL’s back and support its many efforts to enhance the amateur radio community through advocacy, education, and public engagement, ensuring its continued growth and relevance in the modern world. Not an easy task given the unrelenting advances in communication technology that many have mistaken for obsolescence.

If amateur radio has given you half of what it has given me — a career, a community, maybe even a spouse — perhaps it’s worth asking what we owe in return. The ARRL has been holding down the fort for over a century. I figure it’s time I helped a little more with that.