Before I had a driver’s license, I had a ham radio license.

Norman KA2WZW was a family friend. He had a ham shack that I visited as a young fellow in the 80s, and it was so cool. It was a room separate from his house that you had to go outside to get into. It was filled with equipment, electronic tools, and gear.

He had a big tower antenna behind the house that looked like something out of a space station. Back then, there were no cell phones and the internet was not an everyday thing. He would check into nets and talk with friends all over the world.

He built his own radios and antennas. He was also a pilot and had his own small plane. To a kid, that whole world felt incredible.

I wanted to build my own radios and have a cool ham shack of my own. Kids all wanted a secret clubhouse or fort back in that day. I wanted to communicate with people around the world.

Norman offered to take me to weekly free classes that taught the Novice license material. After several weeks of classes, they offered an exam to try to get a “ticket,” which is what a ham radio license was often called back then.

I had to attend the classes, study hard on my own, and learn a minimum of 5 WPM Morse code because it was part of the final exam. I built my own code oscillator with an electronics kit from RadioShack just to practice my dots and dashes until I could send and copy 5 WPM.

I passed and got my ham radio license before I was old enough to get my driver’s license.

The Morse code test was the scary part for everyone who did not already know it. Back then, there were still a lot of World War II veterans around, and Morse code had been used in the military and for emergency communications.

The newbies were terrified of the test itself and by the old salts who thought it was a joke. We sat in a big room at desks with a 3x5 index card. An Elmer sat at a table in the front and sent a message over an oscillator while we scribbled on our cards.

When it was over, they told us the message that had been sent, and we had to have enough accurate copy to pass. I passed the code, and I passed the written.

Norman helped me along the way, and I operated his station a little. Novice privileges did not give a lot of access to the bands, so I studied and upgraded to Technician class shortly after the Novice. Most of my communications were on local repeaters with handheld radios.

Gear was hard to get back then. It was crazy expensive, and I was a kid. But ham radio was always there.

I joined SKYWARN and trained as a weather spotter. I joined emergency communication relay nets. I became an ARES and RACES member. While working a county-wide simulated disaster with RACES, I was introduced to the world of volunteer firefighting and civil defense.

I was like a moth to a flame. I knew I wanted to be a firefighter. As soon as I graduated high school, I joined the local fire department and became a firefighter. I eventually joined the local EMS squad, too.

Ham radio was always there, but firefighting was the spotlight for a few years. Next came the Coast Guard and MARS. I was stationed on the WHEC Gallatin and operated the MARS station a few times while deployed. It was how service members stayed in contact with home.

I am not sure. I was a messed-up kid in some ways — fat, nerdy, small group of friends, bullied and made fun of often. I was “soft” and always had a desire to help and care for animals and those in need.

Firefighting did that. The Coast Guard did that. I saw a lot of trauma at an early age. I witnessed a lot of death and mayhem. It changed me, but it never broke me.

People still think I am strange, and I agree sometimes. But all of it combined was God’s plan to make me who I am today.

Yes. I want people to know life keeps going. Humans keep going. God has a plan.

I knew I would be blessed enough to retire at an early age after 32 years of federal service. I had enough cashflow to purchase some serious gear, and POTA reignited my radio fever. From the first activation, I was hooked.

Thinking back to my roots of volunteer public service, my current skills, and the blessings from God, I thought it was time to try to inspire people to be better, do better, and find Jesus.

I was like a kid again — nervous to mess up, excited to activate the park. I had watched several videos of other hams doing POTA. Shout out to Mike K8MRD at Ham Radio Tube for the easiest-to-follow inspiration.

My first contact was quick, and I thought, “Wow, this is easy.” Then came the flood — the infamous pileup. I had seen Mike handle those over and over in his videos, and it looked like no problem. No problem for Mike.

I heard 15 callsigns at once. Someone added “park to park.” I had no idea what the call was. I transmitted, “Park to park, go ahead,” and another operator calmly came back from a state forest. My first park-to-park was in the log.

It is an opportunity from God to get out and see His creations and wonder, meet people in person at the parks and on the air, connect, and look for opportunities to improve the world around us.

I practice leave no trace protocols and try to leave every park better than I found it. I look for the chance to tell people about ham radio and Jesus and hopefully motivate them to pass it on.

I do not want it to be any certain forced way. I want to put myself out in the world and let Jesus use me as He has planned to use me.

My faith is deeper recently. I have been baptized, and I am seeking God in everything I do. I am a sinner who needs His grace. I do not want to become a preacher or evangelist in the traditional sense, but I am only able to do this thanks to God’s grace and His love for me.

I do not think I need to perform for God’s attention. I need to acknowledge Him and be thankful. He will guide the message as He chooses.

Someone who needs clean entertainment with a moral backbone rooted in faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Everyone should feel welcome no matter where they are in life.

It should transport them back in time when it was safe to knock on the door of the house you broke down in front of, ask for help, and get it. In short, it should broadcast a loving home that is accepting and rooted in faith.

It should never become rage bait, drama, mocking people, doom content, political content, fake perfection, or a place where people feel talked down to, judged, preached at, sold to, or excluded because they are new.

Practical readiness is okay. The Coast Guard motto is Semper Paratus — Always Ready. But this is not fear-based prepper content. We should be ready to help, ready to serve, and preparing our places in heaven.