Utah Valley Amateur Radio Club
Utah Valley Amateur Radio Club (UVARC) is an amateur (ham) radio organization, established February 5, 2016, in Orem, Utah, and with over 700 members, is currently the largest ham radio club in Utah and one of the largest in the western United States. UVARC is both a 501(c)(3) Nonprofit and 509(a)(2) Public Charity, and a Utah Corporation that is dues-free at present, relying solely on member and charitable donations for income. As an FCC-licensed club, it is given the call sign of K7UVA and is affiliated with ARRL.
Purpose
UVARC was created primarily to help newly licensed amateur radio operators (hams) learn about and immerse themselves in their new craft, but also has special emphases on women hams and youth hams. Furthermore, UVARC provides amateur radio information online, by email, by text, by newsletter, as well as on the air, to hams who want to know more about regional amateur radio information, such as repeaters, exam sessions, meeting dates, and local activities. The club meets monthly on the first Thursday, in the Orem City Council Chamber Room, 56 N State Street, Orem, Utah, from 6:30 to 8:00 pm, and has been featured in the Daily Herald.
Activities
UVARC operates several repeaters, the two most popular of which are the 146.780- MHz and 448.200- MHz repeaters (each using a 100.0 Hz tone), located at the top of Lake Mountain and serving primarily Utah and Salt Lake Counties. The club holds several weekly nets on these repeaters, namely a Ladies' Net Tuesdays at 7:00 pm, a Youth Net Thursdays at 6:30 pm, a New Ham Net Thursdays at 7:00 pm, a Family History Net Saturdays at 8:00 pm, and a Singles' Net Thursdays at 9:00 pm. UVARC also holds a sixth net, a CERT Ham Net, on these repeaters, but on the second and fourth Thursdays at 8:00 pm. All these nets are available full-time on EchoLink node K7UVA-R and on a third linked repeater, 224.560- MHz (100.0 Hz tone). All times listed are Mountain Time.
UVARC holds two potluck dinners each year, one in July and another in December, in place of their regular club meetings. During each potluck dinner members are welcome to bring something to show off, such as a project they've been working on, a new purchase, or a small, self-running presentation. During the December potluck dinner, Santa makes an appearance, poses in photo ops with children of all ages in attendance, and takes Christmas wishes.
Aside from regularly organized club activities, members are encouraged to serve as volunteers in public roles as ham radio operators for emergency communication needs in local marathons, bike races, parades, festivals, emergency call-outs, and more. They are also encouraged to serve in other organizations, such as ARES, TERT, RACES, and CERT, and obtain applicable certifications to maximize their services to the community. Furthermore, they're encouraged to teach ham radio courses and assist in amateur radio examinations.
In July 2018 UVARC plans to hold a Days of '47 Special Event Station in honor of Utah Pioneers. More information on that event will be forthcoming.
Field Day
In 2016 UVARC took third place statewide during their first Field Day event, located at the Lindon Marina in Lindon, Utah.
In 2017 UVARC also took third place statewide during their second Field Day event, this time a couple of miles north of Strawberry Reservoir.