President 2023 - Present Vice President 2020 - 2023 General Manager 2015 - 2016 AJ4XM Walter 'Tom' Loughney 12967 N Normandy Way West Palm Beach, FL 33410-1412 QCWA # 35185 Chapter 111

Tom Loughney has a BS in Broadcasting from the University of Florida and resides in West Palm Beach, Florida with his companion Genie. He got started in amateur radio in 1955 with a Hallicrafters S-38B given to him by his uncle who was a Ham. He began as a SWL, but soon knew he wanted to be a Ham and received his Novice license in mid-1956. His family moved from the Buffalo, NY area to a suburb of Pittsburgh, PA and he finished 8th grade there. Then they bought a house trailer and travelled down the East coast on the US for about 6 months. After spending most of that time in different parts of Florida, they settled in Miami. By the time he graduated high school, he had met local Hams and worked after school and weekends at commercial radio stations. This led to his majoring in Broadcasting at the University of Florida, which included Engineering, Production and Journalism. He is a currently active member of the Society of Broadcast Engineers. Elmers were his uncle Jimmy, call long forgotten, and Jerry Wichner, K4ALW SK, whom he worked with at Miami and Hollywood radio stations.

His Ham license expired a few times and he had to retest to get a new Ham ticket. He kept up with what was happening when not licensed or on the air by reading CQ and the other Ham magazines that were on the newsstand. In 2010 he went from Technician to Extra Class in one session and vows to always renew on time from now on. He is an ARRL and W5YI instructor and an ARRL and Laurel VE. He was President of the West Palm Beach Amateur Radio Group for 2011 + 2012 and they were selected as the Club of the Year at the 2013 Dayton Hamvention.

Some of the companies he worked for over the past years have been WCKT-TV (Now WSVN - Miami) and KOB-TV (Albuquerque), LYNX Business Computer Systems, Inc, Allen Test products, Bear Automotive, Sun Electric, FirstCall Communications, American Telnet, RX Data Systems, Inc., and most recently the US Department of Commerce. He also worked in the automotive service field for several years and was an ASE Certified Master Automotive Technician, Paint & Body Technician, and Heavy Duty Truck Technician. He taught Engine Diagnosis, Brake, Alignment and Suspension Systems classes for several manufacturers and developed classroom training programs for them. He operates a technical consulting company, Advanced Radio Services, specializing in antenna design and low power communications.

73,
Tom AJ4XM

September 15, 2023