Keep Amateur Radio on the air!
What you're helping fund (for 2018-2019):
Commercial radio site rent - 3+ sites: $1600/yr
Eventual solar and battery backup: $500/site
Site insurance: $400/yr
For a hobby, it adds up quickly. For our users and visitors the system and service is priceless.
'BARF' is the Bay Area's 3rd UHF Amateur Radio Repeater system. This is significant not only in ham radio technology and advancement but over 40 years of consistent volunteer public service radio service availability.
The Northern branch of the CalNet amateur radio system is one of few unique systems able to cover the counties of Santa Clara, San Mateo, San Francisco, Alameda, Contra Costa, with upcoming expansion back into Solano, Yolo, San Juoquin, and Merced counties. All of them hotspots for friendly visitors, and disaster.
We do not discriminate/put-off any/all public service/public safety needs/wants, or visitors.
Our ever-present challenge is keeping equipment up to date, AND meeting the financial obligations of being hosted in commercial radio sites.
We're not yet a 501.c.3 as that process would take $800 away from essential equipment and site costs.
Our fund-raising goal is $1000 annually - to cover our part of site rent and upgrading equipment. $10, $25, $50, $100 donations in addition to our personal "ham budget" contributions would make a significant difference in moving us forward.
We can only hope we will never need these resources for a disaster, but we do need to be ready.
Hearty thanks to those who have contributed for 2018... now we need to think ahead to 2019.