The York Region Amateur Radio Club was founded in 1959 by amateurs interested in sharing knowledge of radio communications.  As the hobby has grown to include many forms of electronic communication, the club’s valuable resources have helped members keep up with the rapid change and enjoy the hobby even more.

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Our club has also become an active community partner supporting charitable and non-profit organizations across York Region.  We provide free communications services to community events to help improve coordination and safety.  We train and prepare to provide emergency communications services in times of need, coordinating our efforts with government emergency managers across York region.  As another form of community service, we offer nearly-free training to help people obtain their amateur certifications, and we arrange training in related areas such as first-aid, emergency preparedness, and emergency management.

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Club members are active with ongoing technical projects across a range of interests.  We maintain three repeater systems, providing coverage for portable and mobile communications across the region.  Members are experimenting with high speed data communications radio (mesh networks) across the region, which is technically challenging but has great potential. Software Defined Radio has grabbed the interest of our members, some of whom have built powerful but inexpensive radios from kits at the club’s project nights. Our members reflect the multi-faceted nature of the hobby, with interests ranging from using Morse code for distant communications to building and using satellites or bouncing signals off the moon.

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We also like to get together in person, at club meetings, Field Day in June, running our annual Hamfest, or meeting up for a Saturday morning “fox hunt”.

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If you’re interested in amateur radio, please come out to one of our meetings – no other invitation required - or contact us for more information.