The Northland Antique Radio Club

NARC 2014 Annual Meeting Report

Sunday September 7, 2014 at the Pavek Museum of Broadcasting

The door to the museum opened around 11:00 am, and just about everyone went inside to check what surplus items might be for sale in the back room, to look around the museum, or to grab some snacks. Many thanks to Kip Wallace who made a special trip to bring snacks to the museum on Saturday even though he couldn't attend the Sunday meeting. (We are STILL looking for a volunteer to be in charge of hospitality, to bring snacks and drinks to the events.)

Steve Raymer started the meeting at noon and we had a pretty good sized crowd. Greg Farmer announced election results which retained all of the 2013-2014 officers for the 2014-2015 club year. Steve Raymer will again be president, Alan Jesperson and Glen Berg are vice-presidents, Greg Farmer is secretary, and Mary Farmer is treasurer. Greg then gave a treasurer's report, showing that the bank balance is down a little from last year due to having paid St. Croix Lutheran High School early for room rental for the Fall Swap Meet, and because renewals are coming in a little slower than last year. Membership has leveled off over the past seven years in the 155 to 180 range, with 2014 paid membership being 169. Basically, the club is in good shape financially.

Jim Thompson announced that Radio Daze 2015 hotel contracts have been signed for May 15 & 16, 2015, and that room rates will go up a little after having been same for the past six years, to $79 a night. That's still a great bargain! Jim indicated Radio Daze 2014 was a complete success with a good auction, contest, and swap meet, a great program, and perfect weather.

'Finds of the Summer' was very entertaining, thanks to all the participants who brought things to show.
- Frank Moses showed us some of the things that he found during the summer, including a 1970s Allied multi-wave radio, a pair of telegraph sounders, a Heathkit FM receiver, and an Admiral radio.
- Tim and Tom Moen had a five tube McGuire radio and a Dahlberg Pillow Speaker still new in the box. They expressed their opinions that our Radio Daze auction was much better for them than the Illinois radio club's RadioFest auction in Willowbrook.
- Jim Reynolds told us about work he did at Custom Recording Studios recording the latest LP album, 'Bringing Back the Trash!' for The Trashmen. He also brought and told us about a red and white Raytheon hand-wired transistor radio, their first model.
- Tom Sargent, inspired by Andrew Baron's talk at Radio Daze about the Henri Maillardet Automaton, had purchased the book 'The Invention of Hugo Cabret' and brought it to show.
- Ken Ladd showed us a book written by local broadcaster Bob De Haven, titled '55 Years Before the Mike', some Wheaties records, a 1957 WCCO calendar, and some other things that he then donated to the Pavek Museum.
- Glen Berg found a Majestic Charlie McCarthy radio at the Cambridge Antique Fair in August that is all original and from the original family.
- Matt Hyman had a Jackson Bell radio with Peter Pan in the speaker grill that he found at an estate sale, and also brought a KLH model 8 radio with matching speaker.
- Steve Raymer wrapped up 'Finds of the Summer' by showing us a fantastic 1935 Acratone model 152 art-deco skyscraper style radio that was donated to the museum by Charles Dalseide.