When I was more active, there was a guy named Skip who did a lot of
antenna work for the blind hams.  Actually, his business involved installing
commercial radios and antennas, so he knew his stuff.  He didn't work for
free, and many blind hams thought that he charged too much, but if you
needed that kind of work done, and couldn't find anyone else, he was an
option. As Barbara said, volunteerism is declining in general, as folks just
can't afford to work for nothing.
Andy



"I'm pretty good at drinkin beer."

-----Original Message-----
From: For blind ham radio operators [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
On Behalf Of Barbara Lombardi
Sent: Wednesday, December 14, 2011 7:33 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Sighted Hams In Sacramento Not Really Helpful

Yeah it is hard to get help these days and Tom is right about the population
of hams getting older.  And of course a lot of them these days don't have
much in the way of antennas because they don't own land like we used to.
And of course the skills aren't there like they used to be either.  Gone are
the days when people made their own rigs, their antennas and the like.
Volunteerism in itself is tough these days.  People need to be paid with the
economic stressors and the like. 73, Barb  

-----Original Message-----
From: For blind ham radio operators [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
On Behalf Of Tom Behler
Sent: Wednesday, December 14, 2011 10:16 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Sighted Hams In Sacramento Not Really Helpful

    Hi, all.

I've been reading this thread with interest, so here's my two cents worth.

First of all, I have to agree with Jerry;  the hams in the Boulder area are
super, and are always willing to lend a helping hand.  When I moved out
there in the Summer of 2009, I think I had an HF antenna, and a VHF/UHF
antenna installed and operational in the little rental house where I lived
within four weeks of my arrival.

What I did was write to the President and other key folks in the club in
advance of my arrival, explaining my situation and my needs.  Then, in that
same e-mail, I listed some ways in which I thought I could help the club in
return.  Somehow, that combination worked.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that if you can offer your local club, or
the hams that help you, something in return for their assistance, things
usually can happen.  Maybe they don't happen as quickly as we'd like, but
they usually will happen.

On the other side of the argument, though, is the undeniable truth that we
are all getting older, and that the hobby of ham radio is being populated by
older and older people every year.  This means that we have more people, but
those folks may be less willing and/or able to provide the climbing and
other assistance we may require.

Still and all, though, I believe that if you offer something of yourself and
your skills to the involved club, help eventually will happen.

My only problem in this whole area is that sometimes, my help comes and does
things without telling me, which I find out about later, but I guess that's
part of the price we have to pay.

Anyway, these are my two cents worth, and they probably aren't worth much
more than that at all.

73 from Tom Behler: KB8TYJ

----- Original Message -----
From: "Gerry Leary" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, December 14, 2011 10:04 PM
Subject: Re: Sighted Hams In Sacramento Not Really Helpful


> Wow, I feel really lucky.  The Hams in Boulder are really helpful and 
> nice.
> Gerry