WJ5G

Amateur Extra Class

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                       What is Ham Radio? Well, let's see, in 2021 it was estimated                             

                       there were an estimated 1,750,000 licensed Hams worldwide.  The FCC, on              

                       September 13, 2023, reported there were 758,717 active FCC licenses held                              

                       by individuals in the US, US territories, possessions, and APO/FPOs.

                       If each Ham answered the question "what is Ham radio", I would not be

                       surprised to receive over a million different answers. 

                      Ham radio is something different to each Ham.  It is rag-chewing with people

                      you may have never met, talking to friends old and new.  It is listening intently

                      or maybe even speaking loudly into your microphone in order to get that new

                      DX station into your logbook.  Ham radio is the fun and excitement of contesting

                      most weekends every year or searching the bands for those elusive Special Event

                      Stations in order to get those pieces of paper to hang on the wall. 

                     Ham could be all or none of those things.  Ham radio is collecting vintage gear or

                     perhaps buying every new radio that hits the market then selling them off in order

                    to buy the next new one or it could be rebuilding vintage gear in order to breathe new

                    life into the radios that Hams before us enjoyed using.  For some Hams Ham radio is

                    spending their time and money building and installing repeaters throughout the area

                    for other Hams to use.  Ham radio is all of these things and so much more. 

                   It is different for each individual even when they seem to be doing the same thing.  Ham

                   Radio has influenced many aspects of the world as we know it.  There have been countless 

                   young Hams who have went on to be engineers, astronauts, and scientists.  Ham radio has

                   helped an untold number of people during natural disasters and other emergencies.  Hams

                  serve individuals and communities on a daily basis by volunteering their time and equipmwnt

                  to pass traffic messages all across the United States.  They do this so they will have the skill

                  to smoothly keep messages flowing during emergencies.

                  There is something for everyone in Ham Radio.  Believe it or not, I have just barely gotten started

                  in listing all there is to do and enjoy in Ham Radio.  It is truly the hobby for the entire family

                  and for people of almost all ages and from all walks of life.