On January 28, the local Thomasville Amateur Radio Club will be participating in the Winter Field Day, an annual ham radio communications exercise event frequented by ham operators across North America. 

Larry Ochalek, treasurer of the Thomasville Amateur Radio Club, said that they will be setting up at the Thomasville Fire Department Station on Remington Avenue and that the local Thomasville community was invited to come by between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. to learn more about amateur radio. 

“The Thomasville Amateur Radio Club will set up radios, antennas, computers and other communications gear at the Thomas County Emergency Operations Center, located at the Thomasville Fire Department Station on Remington Avenue, to practice two way radio communications with other ham operators in the U.S. and Canada,” Ochalek said. “Club members will be available to explain the equipment and procedures being used.”

A non-profit public service organization, Ochalek said that this event would also mark their 70th anniversary in Thomasville.

“We are a non-profit public service organization, we work with our public partners over here, and in the event of emergencies, we help to provide a communications capability that they may need,” he said. “We have been in Thomasville since 1953.”

Hoping to generate some publicity for amateur radio, Ochalek said that he hoped young people new to the practice would be able learn something about what their club does and the work that goes into it. 

“What we’re trying to do is generate a little publicity in the local area about amateur radio, get people out, especially young people, to see what we’re doing, so we’re having an open house or  about amateur radio,” he said.

Having been involved for over 20 years, he added that they would be presenting the technical skills that are involved in the theory and practice of amateur radio.

“There are technical skills involved with how the equipment works, the theory of amateur radio,” Ochalek said. “We’ll show practical chips and how we set up an antenna in an operation where we’re going to be outside of home station. At this event, we’re gonna set up our antennas in that open grassy area adjacent to the Emergency Operation Center.”

Anyone, from new to old, is welcome to their Winter Field Day presentation, Ochalek said, and they’ll be sure to learn something new in amateur radio.

“We’ll welcome anyone interested in amateur radio, if you got any kind of inclination, been in ham radio before, but maybe you stopped 20 years ago and wanna pick it up again, now’s the time to stop by and say hi to some old friends and see what’s new in amateur radio,” he said. “That’s what we’re all about.”