And a great guy Don was...
When I got my first ticket as a 16 year old kid (WV6YLW in
1962) Don used to show up on the Novice bands (40 meters in
particular) on Saturday and Sunday afternoons to ragchew
with the "new kids". Don always seemed to have time to chat
and talk about his station. It was only after I had worked
him numerous times that I finally figured out he was one of
the "Big Guns" of the era and then only after I saw him
mentioned in QST, he never alluded to that on the air. He
invited me (as a kid from the slums of LA) out to his ranch
to see the station. I rode a bus for several hours across LA
county starting at 6 a.m. for the meeting. It was one of my
most memorable Ham experiences (only topped by the
generosity of my Ham mentor/Elmer - Tom Leeder, W6AHY). Don
seemed to live by the values of the old "Amateurs Code" in
terms of sharing his love for the hobby/service and was most
generous of his time.
BTW, Tom, W6AHY was in his own right a marvelous
representative of the service as well (although without the
Rhombics). Tom was a blind ham and an electronics tech who
taught code classes (using an old paper tape machine the
same as the FCC used downtown where I took my first test).
Tom's shack was in an old windmill structure and he was very
influential in the area getting youngsters involved in the
hobby/service at that time. Somehow his willingness to
assist the new kids was especially powerful given his
"handicap" although he never referred to it as such. Lot's
of great folks have assisted along the way. Too bad they all
didn't have books written about them.
73
Patrick
WA7VNI
-----Original Message-----
From: towertalk-bounces@contesting.com
[mailto:towertalk-bounces@contesting.com] On Behalf Of
wf3h@ptdprolog.net
Sent: Thursday, February 26, 2004 13:02 PM
To: Al N6TA; David Greer; K7GJX; towertalk@contesting.com
Subject: RE: [TowerTalk] W6AM book availability
QST had a biography of the man a few years ago. I'd never
heard of him 'til I read it. Truly a pioneer, and, it
appears, a great guy to boot...
Bob/WF3H
_______________________________________________
See: http://www.mscomputer.com for "Self Supporting Towers", "Wireless Weather
Stations", and lot's more. Call Toll Free, 1-800-333-9041 with any questions
and ask for Sherman, W2FLA.
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