Gilmour Academy and Amateur Radio have a rich history starting as early as 1946.
In the mid-1920s, entrepreneur F.E. Drury purchased "Cedar Hill Farm" in Gates Mills, and engaged Charles Schneider, architect, to build the 41-room Tudor mansion. When the Brothers of Holy Cross launched Gilmour Academy in 1946, the Tudor House became an icon for the new school.
"Estate to Become Notre Dame Prep School," Cleveland Press, July 13, 1945. Acquired with funding from the University of Notre Dame, the 133 acre campus is purchased by the Brothers of Holy Cross for about $150,000.
Br. Don Steffes, C.S.C., KD9WI, (in black robe, upper left) served on the Gilmour Academy Faculty from 1948-1950. He was the first moderator of the Gilmour Academy Amateur Radio Club. Don just celebrated his 100th birthday in December of 2014, and lives with the Holy Cross community at Notre Dame. We celebrated with him when the GA radio club did a Skype video interview with Br. Don on the occasion of his 100th birthday observance.
David Noeth, GA '79, KD8ACO, obtained his callsign in the summer of 2004 along with his daughter, Jessica, GA '07, KD8ACJ. Jessica was a student participant in GA's contact with the International Space Station on January 4, 2004.
Carrie Hansen Kinnison who designed medical testing equipment joined forces with her financier husband to sell their home, buy a sailboat, and travel the Pacific off of the coast of Mexico. They used amateur radio to communicate with other marine mobile stations.
Allen Stay, GA '87, KB8KHW, is the son of Emily and Finley (WD8ARM) Stay, whom Ken met in 1990 when they agreed to rent him their Farm Cottage as his residence! Allen hones his computer skills in several areas of employment, and graces many events and parties as "Swifty the Clown."
George Muenster, GA '88, WD8GEO, were together with KG8DN as student and teacher in the '80s and met again as hams several years ago. George is active in radio traffic handling and in linking projects using Echolink and IRLP nodes to serve the ham radio community.
In 1991, having met LEARA through WD8ARM and KB8KHW (Finley and Allen), Ken passed the Tech Exam and became N8PCR (for the early 1990s).
Al Body, W8DXD, on learning that we were renewing the station at Gilmour, Donated his Collins Receiver and Transmitter to GA. The School later purchased a Collins 30L-1 linear Amplifier.
Our first modern HF antenna was installed in 1993 -- the Gap Eagle vertical.
This was one of the first School Club Roundups on amateur radio in which Gilmour participated, earning 5376 points with 64 contacts using call sign, KG8DN.
Matt Loretitsch, N8QBD, was licensed as an 8th grader and came to Gilmour as a Freshman.in the fall of 1992. He and his dad, Bruce, actively contributed to ND8GA for many years.
Gilmour Academy's School Station, ND8GA, talks with the International Space Station in January of 2004. The vital support needed in this live, direct ISS contact was provided by Dale Reed (W8ABZ), Sean Carey (W8SCC) and Patt McClain (N8RKP) whose images can be seen in this group of photos from December 2003 and January 2004.
Howard Lobert, KO4QN, now a Florida resident, donated his Icom IC-781 to Gilmour Academy in September of 2004. Gary Zimmet, WA8TJL, repaired and upgraded the unit in 2014. In these photos, this excellent contest radio is shown in use by Jessica, KD8ACJ, and John, KD8PJE.,
Beginning in 2001 when she first entered Gilmour, Caroline Greco brought enthusiasm to the GA club with maps of contacts. She was the student net control for the ISS contact in January of 2004. Her Trch callsign, KC8WNY, was serendipitous -- She later went to Syracuse University in Western New York State.
Alex Salahshour, GA '06, earned his Tech license shortly before he graduated. His family, residents of Gates Mills Blvd., started with Gilmour when Alex' sister, Julia, entered high school. Alex, an entrepreneur, has created his own home security company, in which "radio plays a major role."
As a high school freshman at Gilmour, Britt Mawby led the field of ten students in asking questions during the live direct contact with the International Space Station. She is shown here logging during a "School Club Roundup" competition that same year.. Britt graduated from Notre Dame (South Bend) in 2011, is newly married and living in Minneapolis.
Jessica posed a question for astronaut Mike Foale during the ISS contact in January of 2004, and that summer (along with her father, David) earned her Tech license. Fluent in Spanish, Jessica has tutored in the language.
In the summer of 2008 with the help of LEARA members, the beam antenna donated by Bob W2THU was first mounted on the roof of the science building. Since the bleachers from the old gym were available, designer K8DTS chose to recycle them as a large tripod to support the beam tower without roof penetration. N8QBD, KD8ACO and others pitched in to complete the project.
As we assembled in the fall of 2008, we had, for the first time, a beam antenna to celebrate!
The Amateur Radio Club at Gilmour supports communication on the campus at the Cross Country and Track invitational tournaments. Here, Jamie Austin, GA '09, observes the runners from atop an improvised platform near the Cross Country course in October of 2008.
Gilmour opened a new $18M Athletic Center complex in 2009. On December 5th and 6th ND8GA operated a special event to celebrate. (Photo by Mark Most)
ND8GA Celebrated Br. Andre Bessette's canonization as a Saint in the church with 71 contacts during a Special Event on October 17, 2010.
The Council for the Advancement of Amateur Radio in the New York City Schools has sponsored the now semi-annual School Club Roundups for over twenty years. This is a replica of Gilmour's 9th place award among high schools competing in October of 2009.
Some friends gather with us at one of our annual holiday parties.
Among recent GA Alumni, Alex Corkwell, KD8OQB, has been the only graduate to earn a General license while in high school. He passed his Tech and General exams during the same Scout Jamboree prior to his junior year.
Among his many contributions to the ND8GA Radio Station, Dave Foran, WB8APD, is thanked for his generous donation of our high-profile VHF/UHF station! Thanks to Dave we have a Kenwood Tri-band (2, 6, 440) radio and a Diamond antenna to match.
All antennas were removed and replaced in 2012 so that the roof could be re-done. Bob Leskovec, K8DTS, here re-constructs the mast in a new location for the beam.
On September 11, 2012, we enjoyed a meeting with the Case Radio Club, W8EDU, atop Glennan at CWRU.
Bob Chaplin, W8RCY, SK, was a resident of Pepper Pike very near Gilmour. When he passed away, his widow offered Bob's station to Gilmour. Most notable was the addition of his Icom IC-746 Pro Transceiver.
In November of 2013, Bob Leskovec, K8DTS, and Mike Cegelski, K8EHP, both combined their foxhunting gear with Gilmour's to lead an on-campus Foxhunt for the club members.
We started our FLdigi (Fast Light Digital) software this year. Jenny and Julie helped us demonstrate.
Gilmour Academy's most recent competition in the School Club Roundup of February 2014 was enhanced by the "11th Hour" participation of 3rd Party operator, Shuyi Wei, of China in our Residence Hall. She logged about a dozen contacts in 45 minutes, many of which were school and university stations.
In April of 2014, the current Pope Francis announced to the church that enough evidence existed to canonize the two modern Popes, John 23rd, and John Paul 2nd, as saints of the church. To observe the occasion, our Radio Club at Gilmour held a special event, supported by WB8APD, K8DTS, and KD8ACO, as well as student club members. A special event certificate was issued, and 82 stations were logged.
Matt Ray served as President and Radio Officer during his Senior Year. He and Alex Corkwell, KD8OQB, put on a demonstration for the Convocation of students.
This composite shows about a dozen of our members as they appear in some QSL cards at the beginning of the school year.
By special arrangement with the University of Notre Dame, our Radio Club at Gilmour held a Skype video interview with Br. Don Steffes, C.S.C., KD9WI, on the occasion of his 100th Birthday, December 10, 2014.
Hannah took this photo. Each year the radio club helps with communications in the Cross Country and Track Invitational Tournaments, Click on the left photo for the wider image.
We occasionally invite guests to present at our meetings. Here, John Comella, N8AA (Kenny's Uncle) talks about his group's DXpedition to St. Paul's Island, Nova Scotia.
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