[Elecraft] Effective Ways to Introduce Amateur Radio to Newcomers

[Mike Furrey]

 I kept a rig in my classroom, always on in the background at very low volume. I had a small display of QSL cards and envelops with stamps. I also kept an old Hammarlund HQ150 in the room and would let a student tune in a SW broadcast station to listen to while they worked on labs. That generated a number of students participating in the school club round up with admins and parents dropping by to watch the kids "run" stations. A student I had over 20 years ago recently contacted me, "How to we (her and her husband) get a license?" He now has his ticket and she is about to take the test.
I had an advantage though with the daily captive audience. I never really talked about it but ultimately a student would ask about "that radio" in the corner of the classroom. I would make a brief mention and invite them when to drop by when we were operating. 
73 Mike WA5POK
    On Sunday, July 27, 2025 at 12:44:45 AM CDT, eric norris via Elecraft <elecraft at mailman.qth.net> wrote:  
 
 Wayne, et al;
For a few years I gave a PP presentation at local libraries, and a Pacificon a few times, called "The Wide, Wide World of Amateur Radio."  Sometimes I was able to give this presentation the week before Field Day, and on FD I would set up a small demo station with a solar panel and my K2 or KX3.  People were often interested to hear that I built the K2 from a kit.
For the library presentations, I sometimes had ham friends bring in some equipment to talk about after the main talk.  They would be set up at satellite tables in the room for personalized Q&A.  
The presentation itself featured video clips of people doing disaster station setup, ad-hoc mesh networks, working DX, building small kits at hamfests.  I also had clips of meteor scatter and EME signals.  I discussed license classes, suitable beginner radios, local VE testing, etc.
It's been a few years since I've done this, but if anyone is interested I could try digging up the PP (after digging up whatever laptop it's on) as long as you use it for source material (put your own name on it) and not give it verbatum as one ham did for his club.  It needs extensive updating.

73,

Eric NF6S
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