Thank you (I think) for looking me up on QRZ.com or some other search engine that got you here. I have been licensed in the Amateur Radio Service (ARS) continuously since June, 1964 and as K2MF since August, 1977. ARS certificates and previous call signs I have had as well as my General Radiotelephone Operator License (GROL), General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS) License and Marine Radio Operator Permit (MROP) are listed in my expanded profile Detail above.

Sincere gratitude is offered to the following individuals who gave me lots of assistance and support over the years throughout my amateur radio experience:

my parents (Marje and Frank, for whom my ARS call sign suffix is dedicated), who always encouraged me to follow my interests and passions and enabled me to become active in amateur radio by purchasing my first E.F. Johnson Viking Navigator transmitter and Hammarlund HQ-160 receiver for me,

WB2IBK (Art Tselentis, now SK), who was AKA "Harry", a CW enthusiast, my family's TV repair man and my amateur radio elmer / mentor during the last quarter of 1963 and first half of 1964,

W2RID (John F. Rider, now SK) of John F. Rider Publications fame, who was kind enough to open his door in the Parc Vendome apartments in NYC one Saturday afternoon in early 1964 and demonstrate his home brew 20, 6 and 2 meter SSB amateur radio stations to this wide-eyed and technologically-challenged 13-year old boy and his father,

WA2QNH (Harold "Pat" Patterson, now SK) who was the superintendant / manager of the Parc Vendome apartments in NYC, was a very active 20 meter SSB DXer, gave me my first breathtaking glimpse of a Collins S-Line and administered my Novice exam in May, 1964,

N2HWM (formerly KB2EOF / N2ATS / WB2SHX), my life long friend with whom I graduated from operating on 11 meters in the (Class D) Citizens Band Radio Service (CBRS) to operating on 40 through 10 meters in the Amateur Radio Service (ARS) during our middle teenage years,

WA2DZL, who remembered that I had been the Amateur Station Of The Month in the May, 1966 issue of Popular Electronics Magazine when I met him in January, 1972 at my first job in radio broadcasting, patiently tutored me in the second half of 1973 through passing the requirements to earn a First Class Radiotelephone Operator License, and introduced me to amateur FM radio and the ETSNJ 2 meter repeater (now K2ETS/R) in October, 1973,

NB2A (formerly N2ANQ), K2AVV, W2BOB (formerly WB2ZHA), K2DXU, WA2DZL, N1EKM, K2EUH, WA2EXP, KS2G (formerly WA2SEL), KC2HY (formerly WA2SGG), WB2KSP, N2LHK, W2ML (formerly WA2DHF), K2NI, K1NK (formerly AA1AB / AA2HF), N2SQG, K2TV, K2ULR, K2VBS (Paul J. Ducroiset, now SK), W1WHN (formerly WB1ART / KC2MFU) and WB2ZSE, each of whom is or has been a valued friend and professional colleague during my relatively long career in radio broadcasting,

W2DB (formerly WB2DYB), K2DDT, W2DNG (formerly WA2AOL), KA3DXD (formerly WB2PMB), WA2DZL, WA2FZW, N2LS (formerly K2OIY), WB2TIX (Brian Zuccarelli, now SK), K2VHW, WB2WHC, WA2WVH (formerly N2HVG), WA6ZNS, and WV2ZOW (formerly WA2ZOW), who collectively comprised a technically talented amateur radio UHF repeater (WB2WHC was the VHF repeater guy in the) group that was known as the Atlantic Region Repeater Legion (ARRL) and with which I had been loosely associated for approximately a 10-year period that began in the middle 1970s,

KC2CT (formerly KA2DCD) / VK2ILO, K1DO (formerly WB0MPQ), AC0G (formerly KD2ZO / KA0SVA), N4GAA (formerly KA4NRO), K2LSX (John T. Gubernard, now SK), N2MH, W2NV (Joseph F. Mannino, now SK), WB2ONA, K2RPC, WA2UAH, N1URO and N2ZE (formerly WG2W / N2HSJ), each with whom I partnered in various ways / times throughout my exploration of computers and amateur packet radio which began in February, 1983, and the development of MFNOS which began in June, 1993, and,

K4NBC (formerly N4IVB / WD4OYT), who motivated me to power up some of my amateur FM voice transceivers in December, 2007 after all of my radios had been off for a very long time. Then, as if by magic, I had the opportunity to purchase a new Kenwood TM-V71A 2m / 70cm dual band mobile transceiver from KR2I (formerly WA2MHQ) in January, 2008 and my life hasn't quite been the same since! :)

I primarily operated on HF from Hardyston Township, NJ (between June, 1964 - September, 1964 / June, 1965 - August, 1965 / July, 1966 - August, 1966), Manhattan, NY (between October, 1964 - May, 1965 / November, 1965 - June, 1966 / September, 1966 - June, 1968 / November, 1978 - July, 1985) and from Wayne Township, NJ (between September, 1990 - August, 1993). After I achieved the General class amateur radio license in February, 1965 I upgraded my transmitting equipment to an E.F. Johnson Viking Ranger II transmitter and E.F. Johnson Viking Courier amplifier. In May, 1967 I received an official Notice Of Violation (NOV) from an FCC monitoring station in Wahiawa, HI that reported sideband emissions from my modest amateur radio station in NYC as being noncompliant with section 97.63 of the FCC rules and regulations for (accidentally and unintentionally) extending beyond the lower limit of the authorized frequency band for radiotelephony while I was having a pleasant 15 meter AM QSO with XE1Z in Mexico. Now isn't that special? It scared the heck out of me when I first received it, but now it is one of my most prized possessions. It's too bad I wasn't able to use it as a WAS Award confirmation for Hawaii. It took me *years* to actually work and confirm that state!

My most memorable HF achievement came on March 13, 1980 when I was issued #721 of the ARRL 5-Band WAS Award, having worked all 250 contacts using a 67' sloping wire antenna which stretched between my and WB2LIR (Phil Smithline, now SK)'s windows in the Westmore and Parc Vendome apartments, respectively (across 57th street on the west side of Manhattan, NY). I had a blast working 80-10 meters on that antenna operating a Swan 500 transceiver into a Millen 92200 transmatch in the late 1970s through early 1980s when I spent much of my operating time on the Geratol Net, which is a WAS Award Net in the Extra Class SSB portion of 75 meters that had its origin on or about September 28, 1971 when W0NL (John F. Poepsel, now SK) and K2DS (formerly W2IQ, Hank Clark, Jr., now SK) started the activity that developed into it. See the Geratol Net Yahoo Group moderated by VA7DP and the Geratol Net web site maintained by AE2T (formerly WB2KJT) for more information about this very enjoyable HF activity.

I also have other amateur radio award certificates and organization numbers. You want them? RCC (Rag Chewers' Club) nominated by K8QYG (now SK) in July, 1964 (originally sponsored by the ARRL), CP-25 in October, 1980, 3.5 MHz. WAC (Worked All Continents) in October, 1980, Century Cities Award #1 (originally sponsored by 73 Magazine), 5 Band Canadaward #6, Canada 2/80 Award #64 (originally sponsored by the Toronto Metro ARC), NJAC (NJ All County) Award #262 (originally sponsored by W2DOR), 75-Meter Extra Class 2-Letter WAS Award (Geratol) #325, Geratol Director #739, USA-CA-2500 Award #884, ECARS (East Coast Amateur Radio Service) #2281, OMISS (OM International Sideband Society) #8020, SKCC (Straight Key Century Club) #9100, YL-ISSB (YL International Single Side Band System) #11736, 10-X (Ten-Ten International) #23751, QCWA (Quarter Century Wireless Association) #23836 and MARAC (Mobile Amateur Radio Awards Club) #R-1291.

After an 18+ year absence from HF (the longest ever for me), in November, 2011 I erected a 160 meter full wave horizontal loop antenna in Hardyston Township, NJ (ironically, at the precise geographical coordinates from which this newly licensed Novice first got on the air as a radio amateur in June, 1964) under the direction of KF2XW (formerly N2YFG) using items that were supplied by him and KR2I (formerly WA2MHQ). I got back on HF with a Kenwood TS-520 transceiver into a Drake MN-4C matching network inside and a Palstar B4KC 4:1 balun outside feeding the loop. A few weeks later I purchased a slightly used TenTec Jupiter 538 transceiver from N4ALT and I have been having fun learning about more modern amateur radio rigs. I updated it with more recent firmware, a new internal speaker and a TenTec-supplied automatic antenna tuner kit. This transceiver brought me from a 35-year old technology level up to at least a 15-year old one and has now become my primary HF rig in the shack, and now, with the addition of a new Palstar HF-AUTO antenna tuner and a Henry 2K-4 1200 watt RF amplifier that WA2DZL loaned to me, I have a real amateur radio station again:



My current personal goal is to do some ragchewing and complete the requirements for earning the USA-CA-3077 Award sponsored by CQ Magazine that I began working towards in April, 1981.

Locally, I can usually be found listening to WO2X/R (formerly N2HWY/R / WA2DZL/R) on 443.450 MHz. in Montclair, NJ using CTCSS 141.3 Hz. (PL 4A) and maintained by WO2X (formerly KE2SL / KA2QBI). This repeater is occupied by a diverse band of friendly and crazy renegades, each of whom contribute to making it an enjoyable place for hams to converse. Those who regularly utilize this repeater to communicate with each other seem not to take themselves quite as seriously as hams are often prone to do. See the 345 Yahoo Group moderated by AJ2I (formerly KC2IJJ) for more information about this repeater.

Some interesting characters and individuals who have been regularly heard on this repeater are: W1EED (formerly KC2RJA), KA2A (formerly KC2KET), K2ABG (formerly KC2RZH), K2AMJ (formerly KC2AMJ), WU2B (formerly KC2PSY), AB2BE (formerly KC2NTN), N2CHQ (formerly KA2HOY), WA2CRF, W2DDS (formerly KC2LHP), W2DEB (formerly WA2FFL), W2DIS (formerly KC2RNV), WA2DZL, K2EE (formerly WA2VKH), N2EHN, K2EPD (formerly KC2EPD), WA2EPI, N2EVD (formerly KA2TUP), N2EYK (formerly KA2QOQ), KA2FBK, WA2FEH, KC2FHZ, N2FOP (formerly N2QKU), N2FUN (formerly KC2TAI), KC2GLR, K2GTL (formerly KC2GTL), N2GXT (formerly KB2BUI), KA2HBR, KA2HJH, AJ2I (formerly KC2IJJ), KR2I (formerly WA2MHQ, the human glue who holds it ALL together!), KB2IBZ, KC2IMB, N2JJA, KB2JXM, WA2JWJ, NZ2K (formerly N2GIX), KC2KAE, N2KAW, N2KKZ (formerly KB2ISU), W2KX (formerly KG2LM / KC2AUQ), K2LAB (formerly KB2TKF), WB2LIC, N2LIG (formerly KB2LBJ), KC2LSD, N2MH, KC2MMC, KC2MMJ, KC2MVK, KC2NHF, K2NNJ (formerly KC2KSZ), W2NPR (formerly KB2RPJ), KB2OCJ, WB2ONA, KC2PGS, KC2PKW, KA2PVR, WI2Q (formerly WA2RYC), K2QDN (formerly WB2AIF), N2QKQ, WB2QPG / VK3FOR (Jamie L. Genito, now SK), W2RJR (formerly KC2HGI), KC2RNM, K2ROO (formerly KC2HQW), N2SIQ, KC2SKL, WA2SQQ, KC2SRM, KC2SYY, WO2T (formerly KE2GF / KA2UIH), KC2TEL, KC2TJE, KC2TQN, W2TTT (formerly N2DSY / WB2CAM), WA2UEE, KB2UET, KA2UIJ, W2VOS (formerly KB2VOS), KC2VR (formerly KA6HSS), KA2VTA, KC2VVJ, KC2WUG, WO2X (formerly KE2SL / KA2QBI), N2XVD, KF2XW (formerly N2YFG), KC2Y (formerly KC2AY / WB2DZD), N2YLD, KC2YWE, N2ZD (formerly KB2CPW), WV2ZOW (formerly WA2ZOW), KB3PQP, N3SIQ, N3WRX, N3ZW (formerly W3NXV), N4ALT and N0TAZ (formerly KC2NEM). I apologize in advance if I missed listing anyone here!

I have been having a great time sharing my favorite hobby with N2FUN, who was originally licensed in March, 2008 as KC2TAI and whom I married on March 27, 2010. But since I am much more of a listener and sandbagger than a talker (I normally don't operate the PTT switch to speak unless I absolutely have to), for now I am simply rekindling some old friendships and making new ones with the hope of being able to monitor and sometimes engage in some friendly QSOs and dialogue to further my continuing education about amateur radio in general and the diverse personalities of the people who participate in it.

(My gosh. did I actually say that??)