The meeting was held over the internet via a Zoom video conference. The following people were present:

Name Call Sign Position MH Grid WCARC RAC
Charles MacDonald VA3CPY President FN25ag Yes Yes
Karen Bryden VA3IGO Member FN25ag Yes Yes
Bertrand Zauhar VE2ZAZ Secretary FN25bk Yes Yes
Lawrence Dobranski VA3IQ Vice President FN25 Yes Yes
Rémi De Cristofaro VA3DRI Member FN25 Yes Yes
Ray Perrin VE3FN Member FN25dk Yes Yes
Rich Ferch VE3KI Member FN25 Yes Yes
Fred Crowe VE3LAF Member FN25 Yes Yes
Georges-André Chaudron VE2VAB Member FN25 Yes Yes
Glenn MacDonell VE3XRA Member FN25dj Yes Yes
Mike Kennedy VA3TEC Member FN25 Yes Yes
Peter Jago VA3PJ Member FN25ag Yes Yes
Mark Biegler VA3CPB Member FN25 Yes Yes
Clayton Smith VE3IRR Member EN82qb Yes Yes

Opening

The meeting was opened by the President, Charles (VA3CPY) at 7:15 pm. There were no visitors attending the meeting.

Secretary’s Report

Bert (VE2ZAZ) posted a draft version of the February 2023 meeting minutes on the Club website prior to this meeting. Moved by him that the minutes be adopted as posted on the website. Seconded by Glenn (VE3XRA). The motion was carried.

Treasurer’s Report

  • Ray (VE3FN) provided the following report: We have $2,535.19 in our daily bank account, $2,107.60 in our term deposits and $15.00 in our share account. The changes from the previous month to our bank account are a withdrawal of $110.00 for a check to pay for the rental of the Kinburn Community site for our operation in the 2023 June VHF contest, and a deposit of $0.01 from earned interest. There was also a deposit of $60.00 from the annual dues of 3 members.
  • As of today, the Club has 20 members and 3 life members.

Vice President’s Report

  • Meeting presentations in planning:
    • April 2023: Report on Microwave Update 2023 convention.
    • May 2023: No presentation is scheduled; the time will be spent preparing for the June VHF Contest.
    • Ham Radio Science Citizen Investigation. The presentation will be given by a Ph. D. student. A date has not been set.

Director’s Report

The Director was absent.

President’s Report

Nothing to report.

Presentation

Ray (VE3FN): Amateur VHF/UHF/Microwave Weak Signal Communications.

Old Business

  • Vote on the motion to award Peter (VA3PJ) a lifetime Club membership: The vote took place and resulted in a unanimous result in favour of the motion. The motion was carried. The attendees congratulated Peter.
  • 902/1296 MHz Beacons: The beacons are non-operational. Bert (VE2ZAZ) proposed to visit the YMCA site within the next few weeks to assess the units’ condition. He solicited help from one of the attendees to accompany him to the beacon site. Three members have offered to help.
  • WCARC badges: The time has come to order the badge at a cost of $10. The members who wish to obtain a badge bearing their callsign shall send their payment to the Treasurer starting today. An email containing this information was also sent through the Club’s groups.io reflector.

New Business

None.

Show and tell

  • Bert (VE2ZAZ) showed an all-analog ESR meter he built for checking electrolytic capacitors.
  • Glenn (VE3XRA) reminded the attendees that Wayne (VE3CZO) had built a low resistance meter featuring a very small test current. Wayne has a kit available for that project and is organizing assembly sessions.
  • Mike (VA3TEC) showed an FPGA board that integrates an audio in/out chain. It will be useful for doing digital modulation/demodulation.

Ask the Club

No questions were asked.

Adjournment

The President observed that there was no further business; the meeting was adjourned at 8:57pm.