A6
News
Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, November 21, 2018
Contributed photo
Dustin Wyllie operates an amateur radio on Aldrich
Mountain as part of a statewide exercise Nov. 8.
Contributed photo
Front row, from left: Jerry Cowger, Dan Derowitsch, Bruce Strange, Bo Lawrence, Max Breeding, Craig Ensign and
Dan Morrow; second row, Doug Sweek, Jim Jenkins, Darrell Howe, Katee Hoffman, Cheltz Cox, Gene Hunt, Edward
Bustardo and Suzi Mael (with husband Jim Mael’s photo); third row: Ken Kindig, Clay Engle, Mike Schaffer, Bill
Nichols, DJ Brown, Christopher Breeding, Allen Reilly, Ted Phelps, Gary Engle and Gregg Smith; back row, Ron
Brisbois, Chuck Thomas, Dennis Abraham, Bill Turner, Larry Vote, Gary Gregg, Leon Skiles, Jim Davenport, Walt
Reid, Dennis Davis, Ray Davis and Gary Doland.
Veterans honored in Monument
Blue Mountain Eagle
A total of 150 people filled
the Monument Senior Center
on Nov. 11 for a Veterans Day
luncheon and special presen-
tation.
Quilts of Valor were gift-
ed to 47 veterans, presented
by Charlotte Barker and Judy
Harris.
The quilts were sewn and
pieced by local residents
Harris, Cathy Woods, Cheryl
Ringering, Pattie Engle, Sue
Cavender, Silvia Cockrell,
Lonnie Lawrence and Jeanne
Strange.
The quilting was done by
Janice Dickens and Mary Lou
Drury of Mt. Vernon and Su-
san McGuire of Spokane.
The Quilts of Valor Foun-
dation is a nationwide non-
profit in which members sew
quilts to certain specifications
to give to veterans in honor of
their service.
“Many volunteers showed
up to make this event so suc-
cessful,” Strange said. “It’s
amazing what this community
does to support one another.”
Harris organized the din-
ner which was sponsored by
the veterans.
Western Christmas Gifts & More
Wall Decor
Local amateur
radio operators
participate in
state exercise
Blue Mountain Eagle
On Nov. 8, the Grant
County Amateur Radio Emer-
gency Service participated in
a statewide exercise to test
communications methods in
a scenario that disabled all
phone and internet services.
In the scenario, a
state-sponsored terrorist orga-
nization targeted Oregon with
a computer virus that knocked
out both cell and wireline tele-
phone networks and a biologi-
cal virus that killed thousands.
Counties were pitted against
each other as people fled the
cities to escape the deadly bi-
ological virus in the scenario.
Two of the amateur radio
operators who took part in the
exercise in Grant County took
the day off work in order to
participate in the drill.
Dustin Wyllie spent most
of the day on top of Aldrich
Mountain to test a radio mes-
sage and beaconing mode
called APRS and to deploy a
low-power temporary radio
repeater. Seth Klingbeil, who
also took the day off work,
spent his time in a digital ra-
dio mode called Winlink. A
total of 10 amateur radio oper-
ators took part in the exercise.
Part of the exercise was what
became known as the Mac-
Gyver Task. In this contingency
task, all normal radio antennas
used for emergency work were
blown down in a freak wind-
storm. Radio operators had to
quickly implement an alternate
plan. This task required a short
message to be sent and relayed
using three different modes of
communications.
The exercise began in the
Grant County Emergency
Manager Ted Williams’ office
with two amateur radio opera-
tors and representatives from
the county road department,
the health department and the
Community Emergency Re-
sponse Team.
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