The WCARES Monthly Meeting takes place the 3rd Saturday of every month with the possible exceptions of May (Hamvention) or August (Huntsville Hamfest) in which case it is held on the 2nd Saturday to allow members to attend those events.
We meet at the Williamson County Public Safety Building, located at:
304 Beasley Drive in Franklin, TN.
DISCONTINUING REGULAR USE OF ZOOM
Beginning with our November 2024 monthly meeting, we have discontinued use of ZOOM during our meetings. We are not going to be routinely broadcasting our meeting. Future meetings will be an in-person meeting.
Meeting starts at 8AM in the EOC. Members periodically give presentations covering a wide range topics including emergency communications, propagation and antennas, operating techniques and best-practices, kit building, hardware and software, Winlink, weather, ARRL, new modes and more. Upcoming events are also discussed.
Meet other WCARES members and learn more about WCARES and Amateur Radio.
Photographs from WCARES Field Day 2025 taken by Joe Marler, KQ1Q and Dave Rogers, W4DER – thanks guys!
This year included CW and SSB stations as well as GOTA and we were grateful for the use of the climate controlled Williamson County EMA Communications Trailer!
(Click on the photos to see a larger version then click outside the photo to return to the gallery.)
Fall is just around the corner, and that means the WCARES 2025 Simulated Emergency Test (SET) is coming up!
Please mark your calendars for the morning of Saturday, October 11th and plan to take part in this important exercise.
This is a great opportunity to test your equipment, sharpen your skills, and gain valuable experience. This year, we’ll be working alongside the Williamson County EMA and their world-class team and resources.
A signup link is included below. The more participants we have, the more effective—and fun—the exercise will be! Additional details will be shared as we get closer to the date. Feel free to email me with any questions you may have
Fall is just around the corner, and that means the WCARES 2025 Simulated Emergency Test (SET) is coming up!
Please mark your calendars for the morning of Saturday, October 11th and plan to take part in this important exercise.
This is a great opportunity to test your equipment, sharpen your skills, and gain valuable experience. This year, we’ll be working alongside the Williamson County EMA and their world-class team and resources.
A signup link is included below. The more participants we have, the more effective—and fun—the exercise will be! Additional details will be shared as we get closer to the date. Feel free to email me with any questions you may have
WCARES is pleased to announce that a new version of the WCARES Emergency Operations Plan has been posted to the website. Special thanks to Jeff KC1DWP, former WCARES EC, who led a multi-month effort to update the document, which was last dated 2018. Thanks, too, to Laura N4CLO who reportedly ran the revised draft through an AI engine to further improve the wording and clarity. Many others were involved in the update, and thanks to them as well.
You can find the link to the updated WCARES Emergency Operations Plan in the right-hand sidebar of the website, in the Library & Special Interests section under Books, References, Guides and in the Members Area navigation menu when you are logged in to the site.
Joshua Walter, Operations Manager for the Williamson County EMA, provides an excellent overview of Emergency Management and how it works to coordinate responses among all local partners.
Recorded May 10th, 2025, at the WCARES Monthly Meeting.
Work a station
We will have 2 stations setup in the climate controlled comfort of the Williamson County EMA Communications Trailer. Signup to operate a 2 hour shift, No Sweat! You can also help with setup and tear down – Sweat included at no charge.
Drop by, socialize, see the setup, bring a friend
Field Day is a great time to connect with fellow Hams and see an ARES remote setup. Bring a friend who may be interested in Amateur Radio and ARES.
Get On The Air – GOTA Station
Michael KJ4TFV will be working with visitors to Get On The Air. Bring your neighbor, kids, grandkids, in-laws, friends and show them how to GOTA.
Saturday evening fire pit rag chew
7-9 PM – Just show up no RSVP needed
Work a station
We will have 2 stations setup in the climate controlled comfort of the Williamson County EMA Communications Trailer. Signup to operate a 2 hour shift, No Sweat! You can also help with setup and tear down – Sweat included at no charge.
Drop by, socialize, see the setup, bring a friend
Field Day is a great time to connect with fellow Hams and see an ARES remote setup. Bring a friend who may be interested in Amateur Radio and ARES.
Get On The Air – GOTA Station
Michael KJ4TFV will be working with visitors to Get On The Air. Bring your neighbor, kids, grandkids, in-laws, friends and show them how to GOTA.
Saturday evening fire pit rag chew
7-9 PM – Just show up no RSVP needed
Ed Hudgens, Steve Waterman, Paul Tampien, Jeff Schwartz, Randy Moore, Cliff Batson and myself attended the 2025 EMAT [Emergency Management Association of Tennessee] conference for emergency management agencies. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday of this week we attended several sessions on different EMA topics.
