As ham users answer the Columbia Basin DX Club’s call, each responder’s call sign can be pulled up from a database, so users know whom they’re talking with.
February 21, 2025
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On the air
Ham radio operators celebrate George Washington’s birthday with global event
GEORGE — The first president of the United States was wished a happy birthday around the world over the weekend. “We contacted over 500 people all over the place,” said Brian Nielson, one of the organizers of the Columbia Basin DX Club’s ham radio event at the George Community Hall. Saturday would have been Washington’s 293rd birthday, and the club has held the event in George to mark the date for 20 years. Woody Jacobson was working the microphone Friday, chatting with ham radio enthusiasts up and down the West Coast. Beside him, Mike Wren looked up the call signs of the people who responded in an online database, so Jacobson could have a name and location to attach to the voice coming out of the speaker. Every so often Jacobson would push a button and play a recorded message into the microphone.