Washington Crossing Council Amateur Radio Operators plan to have both K3OSR in the Ockanickon Scout Reservation Science Center and W2ZQ at Mercer County Airport Amateur Radio stations on the air for Jamboree On The Air (JOTA) 2023.  The stations plan to be open from 10 AM to 3 PM on Saturday 21 October 2023.  All Cubs, Scouts, Venturers and GSUSA members are welcome.

The DVRA W2ZQ radio station is on Route 579 directly across from the Ewing Township Water Tower at Exit 75 of I-295.  Just look for the tall antennas to find the driveway!

Jamboree-on-the-Air, or JOTA, is an annual Scouting event sponsored by the World Organization of the Scouting Movement (WOSM).  This is the largest Scouting event of the year, with thousands of Scouts talking to one another around the world!

Amateur radio stations around the world help Scouts participate. If the conditions are right, it is common for over a hundred Scouting countries to talk to each other during the weekend.

Cub Scouts, Brownies, Scouts, and Girl Scouts exchange greetings with Scouts over amateur radio. The exchanges typically include information such as Name, Location, Scout rank, Hobbies, Age, etc. Some exchanges lead to long-lasting friendships and the exchange of photos, badges, pins, and patches.  

Scouts can meet two requirements for Radio Merit Badge and one requirement for Citizenship in the World Merit Badge.  Cubs meet their International Participation requirements for Arrow of Light.  The BSA online Scout Shop makes an optional patch available for participants.   This year’s patch is listed as SKU 660418.

Save the date on your unit calendar now!  No advance reservations or fees are required, but if you are bringing more than ten Scouts from your unit, we ask that you divide them up and stagger their arrival times so they can have a more active experience.

If you are an Amateur Radio Operator and would like to help, please contact Jon Frush, W8JRF for the Mercer Airport operation at [email protected] or Eric Sokalski, WS3RIC for the Ockanickon operation at [email protected] .

Thanks & 73

Gary Wilson, K2GW

ADC, Mercer Area District

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