It has been a very successful year for Arapahoe County Amateur Radio Emergency Service (Region 1, District 2). Here are some of our accomplishments for 2019.
1. The Arapahoe County Fair, our major event each year, provided all of us the opportunity to practice our radio skills while assisting the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office and the Fair staff. Over 600 hours spread over 4 1/2 days of volunteer time helped assure the success of the Fair. We received assistance from Denver and Adams County ARES as well as OMEGA (thank you to each of them for their assistance during the Fair)
2. In September we worked with Denver County ARES on Operation AirSmack. A dozen of Arapahoe County ARES members participated in this Simulated Emergency Test (SET) staged in Denver's City Park. Working with the National Association of Emergency Room Physicians, members provided radio communications between the Headquarters and the five different locations within the park.
3. Our leadership team, listed below, has done an outstanding job. The team includes the following:
- Dan NØPUF, Operations Chief
- Alan KIØEP, Training Chief
- John ADØPD, Planning Chief
- Mark, KAØTPG, Logistics Chief
- Kevin N2NWA, Administration Chief and Webmaster
- Ben KBØUBZ Deputy Administration Chief
- Zeke KØXK, Finance Chief
- Mike KDØUFO, Public Information Officer and Severe Weather Coordinator
- Dave KBØLP, Health & Safety Officer
- Mark KD5DKQ, Liaison Chief for served agencies
4. Our current membership stands at 33 and should increase in this coming year.
5. Alan, KIØEP, has created a training program for all of our meetings January thru July of 2020. (Thank you Alan)
6. Creation of an Arapahoe County ARES specific Task Book (thank you Ben), so all of our members can be trained and certified to be better trained ARES members
7. We will continue our membership requirements (see the website) for attendance and participation in our efforts.
8. To increase cooperation between ARES districts, we have made it a point to make sure that neighboring districts are always welcome at our monthly meetings.
It has been a privilege to serve as the Emergency Coordinator of Arapahoe County ARES since March of 2019. Our membership continues to show professionalism as we work with our served agencies.
I wish all of you a Happy New Year, and look forward to a great 2020.
Respectfully,
Peter Meer KCØVAQ
Emergency Coordinator
Arapahoe County Amateur Radio Emergency Service