Bridging Generations

The Blue Ridge Amateur Radio Society held Field Day this weekend and we were lucky enough to participate in it. From the ARRL website, “ARRL Field Day is the largest on-the-air operating event in Amateur Radio. It draws tens of thousands to the airwaves each year, bringing new and experienced hams together for a weekend of fun!”

What amazed me was the different age ranges involved in this event. There were elderly people down to very young people engaged in this activity. It made me feel excited for the future. It was great to see the Boy Scouts there with a list of questions and willingness to learn. Some of them sat at the table and really seemed to get involved. Too many times I have seen generations isolated due to age groups and I love attending things where all generations can be involved. I watched many seasoned ham operators explaining things to younger or inexperienced ham operators. Being new, I was able to ask questions and get answers from people who were readily willing and available to answer them. I was excited to gain information and others seemed excited about sharing their knowledge. We had only planned to stay a few hours on Saturday but ended up spending most of the day and even returned on Sunday. While my husband learned more about the electronics and the antennas, I was learning about how the computer interfaced with the ham radios. Both of us were able to tailor our learning to our interests.

I wish there were more opportunities like this around our community. This event only happens once a year and I wish there were other things like this around. I’m not sure what activities could be held.

Do you have anything like in your community that brings different generations together? If so, pleases

Posted on the Successful Teaching Blog by loonyhiker (successfulteaching at gmail dot com).

Original image: BRARS Field Day by Pat Hensley