K2WO George A. Sereikas Orlando, FL QCWA # 33922 Chapter 45

Thanks for stopping by! I have been licensed since 1958 (KN9MYB) when I was just a young kid in Chicago who loved the idea of communicating with others without having "wires" to connect us. (I know that you can now do that with a cell phone, but Ham Radio is so much more fun!). That still excites me to this day and keeps me intrigued by this great hobby.

Back in 1958, my mentors were Ray Cox, K9LKR and my Dad. My Dad was never a ham, but he loved electronics and radio and he shared that interest with me. My earliest recollection of ham radio was listening to hams on my Dad's Zenith Trans Oceanic radio. My Dad always supported my own interest in electronics and ham radio. I learned so much about electronics and life from him. He subscribed to Popular Electronics magazine and I read it cover to cover each month, especially Herb Brier's (W9EGQ) Amateur Radio Column. Ray Cox was a neighbor who was about 5 years older than me at the time and he kept nudging me along until I got my ticket. I've lost track of Ray, formerly K9LKR. If anyone knows what happened to him, I'd love to hear from you.

Those were the days when as a Novice, you were pretty much limited to CW and the license was good for one year and couldn't be renewed. You HAD to upgrade if you wanted to stay in the hobby. My station at that time consisted of a Hallicrafters SX-71 receiver and the venerable Heathkit DX-35 transmitter. I had a Vibroplex Original Deluxe Bug and a 40 Meter Dipole for an antenna. My crystal (no VFO then) was on 7.158 MHz and the power INPUT was 75 Watts. I remember a big thrill for me back then was working California on CW. I can still remember running down the stairs to tell my folks that I had just worked the West Coast(from Chicago). It was a real treat.

I lived in the great state of New Jersey for 21 Years where my good friend Rick Stealey, K2XT got me interested in antennas, DX, Receivers and the Dayton Hamvention. Rick is a mentor and a great friend.

I've been going to the Dayton Hamvention for over 35 Years now and have missed only 3 shows during that period of time. We have an eclectic group of hams that get together every year at our flea market spot. We pride ourselves as being the "friendliest fleamarket spot at Dayton". We call ourselves the "DOGGYs" (Dayton Organizational Group Gathering Yearly). Our group consists of K2XT, W7KWS, N2ZJK, KM7R, W1QJ (King Conversions) and N3EPG. Each year, the trip to Dayton is the highlight of my ham radio year.

After 30 years in various marketing and sales positions with ATT, I retired in 1998 and we moved to Florida to be near my XYL's family. In Orlando, I had the great honor of working for Amateur Electronic Supply for almost 11 years. I retired from AES in January, 2012. Working at AES was a great way to stay in touch with the new equipment and helped me make many new ham radio friends.

My main interests in the hobby are meeting new people, chatting on CW, SSB or PSK31 and working DX. I've earned DXCC, WAS, WPX and WAC. I'm a member of ARRL, A-1 Operator Club, FISTS, ARLHS, Ten-Ten, SKCC, SMIRK, QRP ARCI, NAQCC, Flying Pigs, FCG, SouthCars and received my 55 Year Certificate from the QCWA. I am also an ARRL VE. I have also dipped my feet in the world of D-Star. It's another interesting aspect of this great hobby. The fun never ends!

I have recently gotten into with low-power and portable operation. I have an Elecraft KX3 (#825) which works great for portable ops with it's built-in batteries and ATU. It's a terrific rig. For Portable/QRP operations, I've also built a RockMite 20 transceiver and I have a Ten Tec 1320 Qrp rig. Portable antennas include the PAR EndFedz, Buddistick, AlexLoop and homebrew NorCal Doublet.

After over 55 years, I still LOVE this great hobby and it never ceases to amaze me how many friends you can make all over the world. One of my great friends is Bill, G4MQV, in Northeast England. We met on the air way back in 1980 on 10 meters and still converse often. We've never met in person, but amateur radio has helped us maintain our friendship. With propagation as poor as it is now, we mostly use Echolink to stay in touch. Another long-term ham radio acquaintance is John, G4NHO, who lives near London. We also met on 10 meters many years ago and he and his wife Jackie actually visited us in NJ many years ago.

If you hear me on the air, give me a call, I'd love to chat with you. Below is a photo from August, 2013 when I operated portable for the NJQRP "Skeeter Hunt" (See Larry's excellent QRP Blog at http://www.w2lj.blogspot.com for more information). I participated again in 2014 and had a great time.

June 16, 2015