Sobering Statistics

Ralph KB8ZOY emailed me this morning with the following.

Dan–
I have the Buckmaster HamCall CD dated 5/3/04 and have been doing some exploring. It is possible to query the database and export the results, say, into MS-Access. Here are some counts of hams in various Washtenaw County cities:

• Ann Arbor – 369
• Chelsea – 42
• Dexter – 51
• Lincoln – 9
• Manchester – 27
• Milan – 35
• Salem – 1
• Saline – 80
• Whitmore Lake – 45
• Willis – 11
• Ypsilanti – 193
• Ypsilanti Township – 1
• Total – 864

Now, if you consider that half of those licensed are inactive (or maybe even SK), and that the ARROW membership is about just over 100, then our membership is about one quarter of all the active radio amateurs in Washtenaw County. That’s not too bad, especially when you consider that the Chelsea club also has a membership of 30 – 40 members.

Even so, think of how much more fun we could have–and how much more effective we could be in providing public service–if we could get up to 200 members. It’s something we have to work on.