Ottawa Amateur Radio Club (OARC) held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Wednesday, June 10, 2026. Members in good standing were eligible to attend the meeting and to vote. To be “in good standing”, members must have renewed their membership between June 1, 2025, and May 31, 2026.
OARC President, Roger, VA3EGY, welcomed everyone to the AGM and delivered the OARC Land Acknowledgment, which has now been added to the About Us page on OARC website. (Thanks to Brenda, VA3HNB, for suggesting it!)
Roger then led a moment of silence for David Parks, a long-time OARC member and Amateur Radio enthusiast, who recently became a Silent Key. On behalf of members and the board, Roger expressed condolences to Dave’s family and friends. Click here to read Dave’s obituary.
The AGM agenda and minutes of the last AGM were received by those in attendance. Click here to read the Minutes of the last AGM.
The AGM covered the fiscal year running from May 1, 2025 to December 31, 2025, a slightly shorter “stub year” because the Club adjusted its fiscal year to January to December. Roger presented highlights of the OARC’s accomplishments for the period. Daniel, VA3GLB, presented the financial statements. Click here to read the OARC Annual Report 2025, including financial statements. The Club is now operating under its approved 2026 budget and, at the end of this fiscal year, a Public Accountant will conduct the Club’s first review engagement covering 2026 financials.
Questions from the floor included:
- Members inquired about the potential rising costs of club administration – specifically if Scout’s HQ became unavailable for future meetings. How many more memberships would we need to sell to cover incremental costs to rent meeting space?
Answer: 30% increase - What qualifications are required for the public accountant who will conduct the review engagement next year?
Answer: Under the Ontario Not-for-Profit Corporations Act (ONCA), audits and review engagements for nonprofits are conducted by independent public accountants. In Ontario, to be a public accountant, you need to be licensed under the Public Accounting Act, 2004, be a CPA Ontario member in good standing, and meet CPA Ontario’s public accounting license (PAL) requirements.
The meeting then proceeded to the Election of Directors, unanimously electing the following four (out of a possible five) directors:
- Roger Egan, VA3EGY
- Harrie Jones, VE3HYS
- Ryan Klomp, VA3WSO, and
- Ed Sich, VE3WGO.
After the meeting, Ross Taylor, VE3HYK, approached the other directors and volunteered to stand as the fifth director. The other directors gratefully agreed!
The following officer appointments have been discussed and agreed to by the directors:
- President – Roger Egan (continuing)
- Vice President – remains open
- Treasurer – Ryan Klomp – moving from the position of Secretary
- Secretary – Ross Taylor
- Director – Ed Sich
- Director – Harrie Jones
The AGM ended with a general question-and-answer session. One question was about the time commitment required of a board member (Answer: 2-3 hours per week). Because the Scouts building has been sold, several other questions were about the Club needing to find new space to accommodate in-person participation in monthly meetings, courses, workshops, Field Day and other activities. Some tentative answers were provided but a proposal to the Board is in development and details will be provided in Roger’s column “The Prez Sez”.
The regular Monthly Meeting continued after the break, at which point non-members were welcome.
Bert, VA3PXE, provided a “look ahead” on the Education goal, starting with the June 14th OARC UHF/VHF ground plane antenna-building workshop (Click here to read the report). Details about future workshops, as well as plans for the fall 2026 Basic Course, will be available soon.
Roger, VA3EGY, provided a “look ahead” at planned activities under the Equipment goal, specifically speaking about planned upgrades to the VE2CRA repeater, including investments in a digital mode.
Looking ahead at the Activity goal, we heard the following:
- Greg, VE3YTZ provided an update on plans for Field Day on June 27-28.
- Ed, VE3WGO, provided an overview of Carp Hamfest on Sept 12 and also made a request for additional volunteers (currently looking for 5 more) and
- Bill, VA3IEN, provided an overview of plans for Radio in the Park on Sept 19.
Finally, Roger flagged that OARC membership fees may need to increase in order to accommodate new costs for meeting space and a few other things. This will not happen before January 2027. Members should watch for updates in Roger’s “The Prez Sez” column between now and then. Roger reiterated that the Club still needs an Equipment Coordinator and an Activities Coordinator, and he encouraged people to get involved with Field Day, Carp Hamfest, and RITP.
The meeting wrapped up on time.
Silent Auction
Harrie, VE3HYS, and Mike, VE3FFK, set up at silent auction at our AGM to sell off some used Amateur Radio equipment. The auction generated $372 for the OARC Youth Equipment Program, adding to funds generated previously by Craig, VE3OP.
Photo from the meeting courtesy of Ryan, VA3WSO
Last Updated on 2026-06-29 by Eve