Dylan Feeney, sitting, and Rick Rineheimer, both of the Murgas Amateur Radio Club, look over radio activity from across the country during the 2024 ARRL Field Day.
Sam Zavada | Times Leader
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Rick Rineheimer, secretary of the Murgas Amateur Radio Club, monitors live, worldwide radio activity during the 2024 ARRL Field Day.
Sam Zavada | Times Leader
The Murgas Amateur Radio Club participated in the 2024 American Radio Relay League (ARRL) Field Day on Saturday, stationed at Back Mountain Regional Emergency Services Building.
The club is named after Jozef Murgas, a turn-of-the-century Roman Catholic priest and a pioneer in early radio technology. Many of Murgas’ most important works were developed during the decades he spent living in Luzerne County.
These days, the club that bears Murgas’ name have kept up the priest’s legacy of radio excellence. The “hams” that lead the Murgas Amateur Radio Club have the power to alert the public regarding the scale of local disasters. In some cases, for example, they serve as the initial point of communication when it comes to sharing the list of people that might be at a mass casualty site.
The ARRL Field Day is an annual, friendly competition that dates back to 1933. Other amateur radio stations are able to prove their efficiency and technological prowess by participating in drills alongside similar organizations across the country. The drills that are run on Field Day simulate the response efficiency of the groups that participate.
Rick Rineheimer, secretary of the Murgas Amateur Radio Club, said that anyone can be a “ham,” regardless of their background in radio or communications.
“There is no typical member,” said Rineheimer. “We have doctors, we have a lawyer, a lot people involved in the electronics industry… We have people from all walks of life.”
The competition aspect of the Field Day is secondary to the important work done by amateur radio people in a live situation, but the stakes can still be high for a smaller network like that which was stationed in the Back Mountain on Saturday.
“There’s some clubs that have 20 transmitters on the air. We’re not competing against them,” Rineheimer said. “But it’s bragging rights. There are no trophies or anything like that.”
Information about the Murgas Amateur Radio Club can be found at www.murgasarc.org.