Personal Log 9.24.20

 This is somewhat a loose sequel to my previous post on amateur radio & ministry uses...

Let me start off by saying: I'm not a conspiracy theorist, alarmist, nor even a survivalist, I'm a realist; I know that God is in control but I do believe in having some measure of preparedness much like Joseph in preparing Egypt for the upcoming famine.

Now, let's be honest: disasters can happen; an earthquake or  tornado can take out a cell tower or two, the power grid may go down for awhile & then what are you gonna do? How are you going to communicate w/ family & church family? I live 9 miles from a nuclear power plant, it's one of the safest in the nation but you just don't know if it's going to a be a target for a terror attack or they'll have an accident/leak & I'll have to evacuate the area for a few days or longer. Like anyone, we hope for the best but we prepare for the worst.

When I was a kid, my brother & I received two cheap Sears walkie-talkies for Christmas; the range was pretty much from one end of the house to the other. I had fun as a kid.

Nowadays, the technology has changed so much that there's many options for communicating either off the grid or in an emergency. 

HAM

I'll briefly mention HAM radios, the output/range is incredible (in some cases 30 – 600 miles!) but there's a test, a fee & then the equipment. It can get pricey for the average person. Let’s be honest, the majority of people though are not on HAM radio. I hesitate to even mention HAM as the enthusiasts come off as an arrogant bunch in the amateur radio world, looking down on & talking down to, all the other forms of wireless communication, that alone is a turn off.

GMRS

GMRS stands for General Mobile Radio Service, there are  some fine two-way radios in this category. The thing about GMRS is that it's repeater capable, which simply means the signal hits a repeater tower & that repeater hands the signal off to another repeater or to any GMRS radio. I recently heard part of a conversation on a GMRS frequency between one guy in Chicago & another in New York, then one between men in Indiana & California, it was crystal clear & very impressive. I'm in SW Michigan & just this morning there was a man in SE Florida monitoring a certain frequency that I was picking up on; it sounded like he was a football field away. You do need a license from the FCC to legally use these radios/channels for communicating but it's only $70 for 10 years & is good for you & your immediate family. The GMRS community so far appears to be very friendly & helpful.

FRS

FRS stands for Family Radio Service & there are some really great two-way radios that fall in this category but the range is somewhat laughable at ¼ - ½ mile w/ only a 2 watt maximum output… It is license-free though & more people are using FRS radios for short-distance communications such as hiking/camping, business use, neighborhood watch teams, etc.

CB

Citizen's Band! I grew up w/ CB so that's what I'm most familiar & comfortable with. It has a maximum of 4 watt output for handhelds & mobiles, 12 watt output for SSB (single-side band) & 100 watt for base stations; it's also license free. I will say this, it is AM as opposed to FM so there may be a clarity issue for some but most people don't have a problem communicating w/ CB & depending on the antenna, the range for handhelds can be 2 – 4 miles, for mobile sometimes as much as 10 miles & that's not bad. If you can afford it, get a mobile unit for your vehicle(s) & a couple of handheld units w/ some longer antennas for greater range. Modern higher-end CB's are being built w/ NOAA weather channels programmed in so that's definitely a plus.

I have an old Audiovox GMRS-1535 two-way radio that I use to listen to NOAA weather alerts. It has 10 weather channels & even w/ the short, stubby rubber ducky antenna I can pull in the report I need for my area:

KJY62 La Port, IN

I pretty much know what's going weatherwise in a 50+ mile radius. NOAA also provides national terror alerts & amber alerts so it's pretty useful, your tax dollars are paying for it so why not use it?

There's prepper sites all over the web that can go into much more detail on how to prepare for emergencies, how to pack a bug-out-bag, etc & like I said, I'm not a survivalist nor an alarmist but wisdom says be prepared. IF disaster should strike, predetermine on where to meet & what devices/channels you're going to communicate on.

There's also a word of wisdom for the Church during an emergency when regular communications (social media, wifi & cell phone service) are compromised, if you're a pastor or church leader, remember that the congregation/flock are humans & some may panic, some will most likely need  guidance, encouragement & comfort, this is where amateur radio  comes in: have a plan in place that during an emergency, leadership will be broadcasting on a certain GMRS frequency and/or a certain CB channel.

This is also where a Church CB base station can be especially useful because of it's power & range: if it can transmit around 30 – 50 miles, it will reach a pretty good chunk of the congregation; for those who live further than 50 miles out the congregants who live within the transmitting range & are able to receive from the Church base station can relay the words from leadership to those who live even further out. 

It's not only limited to guidance & encouragement from leadership; like during the stay-at-home orders amateur radio  in an emergency can help w/ supplies, food, gas & wellness checks for neighbors or anyone in your area.   

It's a win/win situation.

Like Kip Dynamite sang at his wedding in the movie Napoleon Dynamite, “I love technology…”

We all love technology & I encourage everyone to use what is available: new & old, online & offline to live (& live out) the gospel, to minister & to manifest the Kingdom in any & every situation we face, good or bad, calm or chaos. The Church sets the the example.

I do encourage you though, if at all possible be like Joseph: have a plan in place for good times & bad.