The children and youth free time activities are quite popular in Czech Republic for decades. The adult volunteers organize camps or weekend actions, leads whole year free-time groups for children. Some of these volunteers are HAMs. I would like to show some of their activities with children and youth in Czech Republic in a nutshell.
The basic activities are the electronic and HAM radio hobby groups. These are led by radio amateurs or electronic enthusiasts. Such hobby groups are usually covered by some nonprofit organization, free time center or local basic school. These organizations generally assure the legitimacy, insurance and some public relations. So let’s go though the brief intersection of current activities.
HAM radio hobby group for children in Vracov (JN88OX) (activity of radio-club in Kyjov OK2KYK)
This HAM radio hobby group has started its activities in September 2010. The participants are usually boys from 7 to 15 years old. This group of 10 young radio-amateurs is led by experienced HAM Jan OK2BUT with the assistance of OK7WW and OK2CR. The scope of their activities lies in making HAM radio contacts, participation in local VHF contest and listening of local HF contests. They have already 7 SWLs in their group. If they consider electronics they construct blinkers, buzzers, AF amplifiers. Their collective is not so keen of theory but they really enjoy the team building activities like group walking trips to SOTAs or tests of ARDF. All of them are the members of the radio-club in Kyjov O2KYK.
Radio-club OK1KVK in Carlsbad:
The radio-club in Karlovy Vary (Carlsbad) OK1KVK has been concerning with the youngsters activities for many years. They have been organizing the hobby groups 3 times a week for children and youth (10 to 26 years old). The content of their activities is education of electronics, radio-electronics, microprocessors programming or robotics. They cooperate with other organizations eg. scouts and organize the presentations or workshops about their activities during different events. They organize ARDF during the scout camps, or the examples of simple QSOs in CW at similar events. They have a quite nice HAM QTH at Blatensky vrch (JO60JJ) where the radio-club participates to HF and VHF contests. You can check their web site: www.radioklub.cz. The chairman of the radio-club is Michal OK1WMR.
Free time center in Hradec Kralove (JO70WE):
The HAM enthusiast Vladimir OK1IVZ leads 2 hobby groups for young electronic “engineers” in the Hradec Kralove city. Both of these hobby groups are attended by 10 children. Next 3 youngsters have been the new radio-amateurs and members of the local HAM radio-club OK1OHK yet. It is interesting to note that the director of this free time center is Vojtech OK1ZHV. HAM as well.
You can see some of their activities at: www.barak.cz
Radio-club Prague OK1RAJ:
The hobby groups for youngsters and children have started in Prague. One of these activities is supported by the radio-club OK1RAJ. They hold a hobby groups for children engaging education of electronic basic, making Ham radio QSOs, microprocessors programming. They attend the radio-scouting as well. Interest of them is the radio-scouting as a connection of the principles of scouting and HAM radio. They participates JOTA (Jamboree On The Air) on regular basis and present the HAM radio at the scout camps too. The contact person is Milos OK1MZM form radio-club OK1RAJ.
Radio-club OK2KJT (contest call sign OK2D, OK2C):
The youngsters electronic hobby group in Vsetin (JN89XI) is led by the enthusiast Robin OK2UWQ, who is excellent designer of the kits for children. Its activity has been re-established in 2010. Today his hobby group is attended by 18 children. This group focuses on building the prepared kits of simple receivers, QRP transceivers and digital hobby electronic. You can check his web site: www.ok2uwq.com
The leadership of this hobby group had been covered by radioclub OK2KJT until 1992 in the club room belonging to the radioclub by the factory named MEZ Vsetin. This hobby group had been led by OK2VNX, OK2VNT and later on by OK2UWQ and OK2PKX.
Free time centre ASTRA and radio-club OK2KDJ in Frenstat pod Radhostem (JN99CM):
The activities with children considering electronics and HAM radio have been running since 1975. We had two hobby groups last year. 16 and 16 children in small town Frenstat pod Radhostem. One of them is led by me and the second one had been led by the great instructor and HAM Mirek OK2SIA, unfortunately he has gone. Now I have two young instructors Martin OK2MRK and Dan OK2DKZ and we have 23 children in one hobby group. We train the basic lock-smith art, soldering art, PCB design art etc. but the merit of our activities is the hobby electronics and HAM radio activities. We participate to the local VHF contests with the gang of children led by Milan OK2BZE.
Similar activities run in many other places in Czech Republic and I would like to name some of the other VIP HAMs whose are working with children and youngsters. Frantisek OK2LF, Ondrej OK1CDJ, Petr OK1VEN etc…
73 Petr OK2AIA, Youth Coordinator CRC
PS: I had also attended a electronic hobby group during my childhood. But it is a long time ago and it had been in Litovel (JN89MQ).
Next articles about HAM radio activities with the children and youngsters will follow…
