MAPLE RIDGE AMATEUR RADIO CLUB
The Maple Ridge Amateur Radio Club (MRARC) is a chartered non-profit organization, registered under the British Columbia Society Act (Certificate of Incorporation No. 11556).
Our constitution outlines the following mandates:
- To promote Amateur Radio as a hobby
- To raise awareness of Amateur Radio in the community by encouraging public involvement in the hobby through education
- To be ready to assist, at any time, in the event of an emergency where communications may be required
- To sponsor and support legislation and regulations which will benefit Amateur Radio as a whole
- To affiliate with other Amateur Radio organizations of local, national or international jurisdictions, if in the opinion of the Society, such affiliation will be of mutual benefit
- To assist non-emergency community events with radio communications as maybe be required for parades, festivals and other public events, whenever possible.
Our club was formed in January 1964. Our founding members included:
- Floyd Beardsell [VE7HI]
- Pete Orobko [VE7FY]
- Don Knopp [VE7BLM]
- Steve Gold [VE7AJA]
- Hiram Doughty [VE7APE] (sk)
The club’s first few meetings were held in Floyd’s basement, before a regular meeting location could be found.
Our club’s first President was Floyd, with Pete acting as Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer. Floyd and Pete were our only executive for the first few years, simply reversing roles.
Our Founding Fathers:
Pete Orobko [VE7FY] and Floyd Beardsell [VE7HI]
Photo taken at MRARC’s 2010 Spring Swapmeet
Floyd organized our first Field Day in June 1964, up at the Thorn Hill site. Floyd and Pete went on to organize many Field Days over the following two decades.
The club’s first Ham Fest was held in the late 1970’s, with Dick Harlow [VE7BRH], Pete and Floyd acting as the organizing committee. This event was [and remains] our club’s primary fund raiser.
The Club Crest (see above) was designed by Pete’s wife, Charlene Orobko, during the 1970’s. This design was ratified shortly after members adopted green and gold as our club colours. A number of club jackets bearing the new crest were purchased by the membership.
Our club’s first 2m repeater was installed by Floyd and Dick in 1975; and we now operate repeaters on 2m, 1.25m, 70cm, as well as Packet.
See here for additional repeater info.
The club station includes multimode HF, VHF and UHF capabilities; and remains available to all Licensed members in good standing.
Our clubhouse is located in Heritage Hall, at 12460 Harris Road, in Pitt Meadows.
See here for full location information.
The club’s formal Business Meetings are held at 19:30hrs (local) on the first Tuesday of each month. Seating is somewhat limited, so please arrive early. These meetings typically run about 60 minutes in duration.
We also hold a Coffee Social at 19:00hrs (local) every Thursday night. These are very informal and have proven hugely popular with our membership; providing a fantastic opportunity to meet with other hams, solicit technical assistance/training, work together on projects, organize club and community events.
UPDATE: Some of our club members have recently started gathering for coffee/breakfast, inside the Food Court at Haney Place Mall, starting at around 7:30am each weekday morning.
New members and visitors are always welcome.
If you would like additional information or wish to leave a comment about our club, amateur radio, this website, or it’s content, then we would strongly encourage you to leave us a comment here [or drop us an email, if you prefer].
