In my days as a radio broadcaster, one of the most exciting things we did was a “remote”, where we took our gear and our talent out into the community to broadcast live. My good friend and legendary programming consultant, Gary Berkowitz, recently wrote a column about how to accomplish…
What follows is a summary of the War Emergency Radio Service (WERS). Information was gathered primarily from “Fifty Years of ARRL,” an historical record of the League and amateur radio. It was originally posted on the AC6V website. First a bit of background: In 1939 there were 51,000 US hams.…
(Update: June 16, 2019) The “Real” Scott Westerman left us on April 18, 2018, my mother’s birthday. He loved being a Dad. He was my role model for fatherhood and a father figure for countless others during his 92 years. “We don’t get to choose the cards life deals us,”…
Worked All States. It’s the first significant milestone for a radio amateur after passing the General Class exam. No matter what your gear, it’s an achievement that can be earned in a year or less if you play to win. Here’s how. Every state has its own QSO Party, a…
I decided early on to aspire to lead for one reason: I prefer to influence the course of my own destiny. “Build your own dreams,” writes the young Chicago born entrepreneur, Farrah Gray, “or someone else will hire you to build theirs.”
By Scott Westerman Of all the natural wonders that caress our beautiful campus, the Red Cedar River is, perhaps, most symbolic. Its waters flow inexorably toward the west, reminding us that we must continuously expand our own horizons of thought and explore new vistas beyond our comfort zones. It…
By Scott Westerman Listen to an audio version of this message. So many challenges compete for our attention these days that it’s easy to fall into the trap of feeling that something is not a real problem.. until it affects us personally. Some call this “privilege”. Others argue we have only so…
By Scott Westerman Listen to an audio version of this message. “When tillage begins, other arts follow. The farmers, therefore, are the founders of human civilization.” Daniel Webster My first radio job involved reading commodity prices on our local radio station. I was just 14 and did not yet have…
By Scott Westerman “Excellence is not a skill. It’s an attitude” ~Ralph Marston I never worked in a role where I was “protected” by a union and quickly progressed to a level where my employment was “at will”, meaning that my boss could let me go at any time for…
By Scott Westerman Listen to an audio version of this message. “Face your unpleasant current realities head on, but never lose faith that you will prevail” ~Adm. James B. Stockdale The death of a loved one, an unexpected health diagnosis, losing a job, a breakup, moving to a new community,…