Christopher Tate Alamance Amateur Radio Club and American Radio Relay League North Carolina Section Public

Information Officer PO Box 2687 Burlington, North Carolina KJ4UBL@arrl.net June 10, 2013 Re: Invitation to visit with us during Field Day June 22nd and 23rd Dear Ben and Hackers and Makers: On behalf of the Alamance Amateur Radio Club (AARC) and youth in ham radio, I cordially invite you to meet with the Amateur Radio operators of your community and members of the AARC at 721 Burch Bridge Rd. (near WBAG-AM) on Saturday June 22nd starting at 2:00 pm and continuing until 2:00 pm Sunday June 23rd. This is the National Field Day for Amateur Radio people. Throughout the US and Canada, ham radio operators will be setting up radio stations in unusual locations and making contact with others as a display of their emergency communications capabilities during the 24 hour period. In the past year alone, ham radios people have made headlines with their work in wildfires, floods, storms, tornadoes and other crises. Operators provide emergency communications for many government and civic organizations in disasters. In addition, they provide supplemental communications when normal systems are rendered inoperable or overloaded as seen at the Boston Marathon. Hams have been called (and correctly so), The people behind the curtain that made the heroes look good. Like most communities, Burlington and Alamance County doesnt expect a major emergency. But they happen, and losing communications quickly can turn an emergency into a real disaster. Oklahomas Governor relied on ham radio for inter/intra agency communications due to cell phone outage during the tornado outbreak. Amateur radio operators volunteer to provide non-emergency communications for community events such as parades and charity runs. Amateur radio provides a rich social outlet for members of the community, including those with handicaps and children. There are many children and teens with their ham radio license in the area. In short, Alamance County benefits in varied ways because of the activities of amateur radio operators. The volunteer effort of each ham radio operator saves the local taxpayer $19.09 per hour 1 by freeing up public service personnel during community events and emergency conditions. We are inviting the press to drop by. We will have brochures, information packets and other materials made available through the ARRL, the national association for Amateur Radio, explaining our work. I hope that this plan meets with your approval and look forward to your visiting this event. It should be fun and is also a validation to the hundreds of Amateur Radio volunteers who have spent thousands of hours providing emergency communications, public service work and other benefits throughout our community and region. If you need more information or would like to confirm your visit please contact me at the email address listed above. Please visit www.arrl.org/field-day for more Field Day information and to find the field day site for a ham radio club nearest you if you are unable to visit our location in Burlington, North Carolina. Sincerely, Christopher Tate, KJ4UBL AARC Member and American Radio Relay League North Carolina Section Public Information Officer

Directions for AARC 2013 Field Day site: Burlington Police Club 721 Burch Bridge Road Burlington, North Carolina From Downtown Burlington: Turn onto Elmira St. Veer left onto Burch Bridge Rd. The Field Day site is located mile further on the right. From Elon: From Webb Ave turn onto Flora Ave. At the Y intersection turn right onto Burch Bridge Road. The Field Day site is located 1.2 miles on the left (1/4 mile past WBAG radio station).

The site is not visible from Burch Bridge Road. There will be a sign at the entrance.

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independentsector.org as of May 2011. Please note that 2011 is the latest year for which stateby-state numbers are available. There is a lag of almost one year in the government's release of state level data which explains why the state volunteering values are one year behind the national value.

Elmira St.