And now I’m going to read a poem that I wrote myself which is mainly about how dad got me interested in radio.

My Father, he was a Radio Ham,

It was his hobby, his life and his passion.

Although nowadays people think it rather old fashioned.

He showed me from where he operated,

In this room called a Shack.

The place filled with curious equipment

And Radcoms piled in high in a stack.

He eagerly sat me down at the desk

And talked me through his station.

The Keyer, the Amp, the Rotator,

Wow, this was some operation!

He Said, “Look out there!”, so through the skylight I looked,

To see his tall Tower, 100 foot it stood.

His ongoing problem were his towers you see, the goal was to restore life to his monoband yargee.

Though through recent years he hadn’t quite got the knack, he was always scribbling down different equations to crack.

His pride and his joy were his towers you see,

The garden full of metal from his monoband yargee.

So I took the exam to become a Radioham

And passed eventually

We chose me a callsign that I knew we both wanted,

A name that would carry on your legacy.

I applied and we got it, my very own call

M 3VZT.

He taught me the lingo and the things that Hams say,

So much to learn it took me all day.

But I plucked up the courage and called out CQ

We listened through the static for a call to come through.

I scoured the band for at least half an hour,

When finally, someone was there!

A woman you know was my first QSO

And she called out “59 Delaware”.

Oh, how we laughed at this lady’s funny voice,

It became a long running joke,

Even funnier still for the Hams that knew him,

He had his own American accent when he spoke.

He used to contest a lot,

Days and night on the trot

Towers rotating this way and that,

He was always on a mission

For another DX-pedition

Just like his beloved Montserrat

Alas he’s had to sign off the airwaves now

He’s transmitted his last 73

You’re 5 and 9, I can hear you fine,

I wonder, can you still hear me?

But we’ll all read the signs, if you give us some time,

You’ve gone to a place we cannot go,

In our hearts you will rest, you’ve completed your quest,

88’s G3VZ tango.