Amateur Radio Enlightenment
Dickson Tarnue, EL2DT
I did not realise how interesting and great life experience it would be to spend time with ham radio activities until I met with the VooDoo Contest Group in November 2012 here in Monrovia, Liberia. When I first heard the name Voodoo, I wondered who these people are, because I know some extra meaning of voodoo in my African settings. But when I saw ‘Contest Group’ that reminded me of the great hobby, ham radio, we all love in some various ways, which gave me some peace of mind.
I have heard that hams get crazy whenever they are ready for their ham activities. So, many of their days are filled with connecting pieces of wires everywhere. I thought this claim by people was not that real until the Voodoo contest group included me in this year’s CQWWCW contest to operate with them. For the first week of activities upon their arrival, even though we were not crazy as some people say, we were not too far from it because we had the whole hotel facility completely full of wires and aluminium.
After our set up and contest, I reflected on some of the most interesting and important things that I had achieved: new experiences, professionalism, togetherness and respect for each other. With my first time ever taking part in such a great contest, CQWW has given me a great achievement ever in my life in ham radio. I want to take this opportunity to extend my thanks and appreciation to the VooDoo Contest group for this opportunity. And I will use this opportunity to spread the word about ham radio in my country, Liberia.
View of Dickson’s antenna at his home QTH.