Meeting Minutes - September 1, 2009

The meeting was called to order by President Steve Schulze (N9UDO) at 7:30pm. The minutes from the Executive Committee Meeting on August 4, 2009 were distributed and reviewed. Due to the lack of a quorum, the regular meeting had been cancelled. Treasurer Don Evenson (K9JYX) was absent. Steve (N9UDO) presented the treasurer's report.  Our current balance is $xxx4.37. Old Business: The 13th annual Circus City Swapfest was a success!  We sold 161 tickets and 24 of 30 tables.  After all income and expenses were tallied, the event showed a profit of $xx8.49!  The tables were full, treasures left the building, and the food was FABULOUS! A good time was had by all. See the pictures on our web site. Thank you to all who made this event a success. We're going to do this one again next year! New Business: Executive Committee nominations were made this month, the elections will be October 6, 2009. For your consideration, the following positions will be voted upon: President, Vice-President, Treasurer, and Secretary.  The current officers are: President Steve Schulze (N9UDO), Vice-President Tom Harrison (N9PQJ), Treasurer Don Evenson (K9JYX), and Secretary Jane Steinweg (N9JAS). Brad Pointon (KB9VMC) made a motion to nominate all the current officers. This was seconded by Rick Plouffe (N9ROY), and the vote was unanimous. No other nominations were made. REMINDER: Elections will be held at our next meeting! D-Star is on the air! The controller for 147.315 and 145.310 was malfunctioning with greater frequency shortly before the Swapfest. In order to ensure the .315 stayed on the air, .310 was taken off the air. D-Star was connected to the available .310 antenna for a trial run. Eventually, the D-Star antenna will move farther up the tower, but we are functional at this point. Further details for D-Star operation are available on our web site, including instructions for our members to register with the WB9FDZ gateway. This brought up a discussion of the feasibility of resurrecting .310. The discussion included costs, tower issues, EchoLink, and Skywarn. Rick (N9ROY) made a motion to activate EchoLink on .315 for a 30 day trial period. This was seconded by Dave Spearing (KB9CSW). The motion passed by majority vote. Although .315 seems to be stable at the moment, discussion revealed a low confidence level. Brad (KB9VMC) proposed that we go ahead with the purchase of a new S-Com controller. Rick (N9ROY) seconded the motion, and the vote was unanimous. Rick (N9ROY) made a motion to adjourn the meeting at 9:00pm. This was seconded by Tom (N9PQJ), and the vote was unanimous. Our next meeting will be October 6, 2009. Respectfully submitted, Jane Steinweg (N9JAS) Secretary, Yellow Thunder A.R.C. In attendance: Steve Schulze (N9UDO) Tom Harrison (N9PQJ) Jane Steinweg (N9JAS) Dave Spearing (KB9CSW) Gary Sorensen (W9ULK) Sandy Eberlein (W9SKE) Rick Plouffe (N9ROY) Brad Pointon (KB9VMC) Wayne Burgess (W9YYZ) Dates to keep in mind: 9-12-09: Ozaukee Radio Club Swapfest 9-12 & 13-09: Radio Expo, Chicago 9-19 & 20-09: Peoria Superfest 10-06-09: YTARC meeting & elections 10-07-09: So. Milwaukee Amateur Radio Club's Auction 10-13-09: Sauk Co. ARES/RACES meeting 11-14-09: Milwaukee Repeater Club's Amateur Radio Fest