About Me

Well you found my site so I might as tell you a little about myself. I currently live in Vero Beach which is located on the central east coast of Florida. I was first interested in computers and radio around the age of 6 when I started taking apart everything in the house. This is around the same time I got my first computer which was a Texas Instrument TI-99/4a which allowed me to start writing programs in BASIC which I was good enough to impress my parents and family but never really mastered. Around the age of 16 I got very interested in Radio and purchased a study book on Amateur Radio as well as a Handheld CB Radio, while I read the book multiple times my parents and I had no clue where to go for the test so I never did. But I did spend many of nights sitting on top of a 10′ ladder in my driveway with that Handheld CB Radio using the handle of “JarHead” to talk to truckers and locals.

When I graduated from high school I fulfilled my dream of enlisting in the Marine Corps and severed my 4 year tour in a number of locations including Puerto Rico, California, and the Persian Gulf. Though I was not a Radio Man by job I was often chosen to carry one because of my knowledge and experience with them, i was also a Certified EMT and a Marksmanship Instructor.

After my tour was up I choose not to reenlist and instead followed my interest in technology by earning a B.S. in Telecommunications Management. My first job was as a Technology Specialist for our local School District where I worked with another Ham by the name of Craig (K4CPJ). in 2004 Craig convinced me to study again for my license so that we could use Ham Radio as a backup communications for our role as TV/Radio Broadcast Specialists for the county’s Emergency Operations Center during local disasters and I soon had my first call sign of KI4HLW.

A few years later I moved into private industry and was unable to work at the EOC anymore so I got involved with the American Red Cross as the local chapters Communications Lead, now known as Disaster Response Technology, where I designed and built the W4NTC Station. There I became good friends with Duane Duncan (K4LNN) who got me interested in HF, DX, and Contesting which I still enjoy to this day. I also started to get more interested in tying Computers to Ham Radio and became interested in the Digital modes. On HF I really enjoyed RTTY contesting and later PSK31 for regular QSOs, I also got into APRS and PACKET Radio.

As a volunteer I am now the Red Cross Government Liaison and back at the County EOC. I also decided it was time to finally get a new call sign and simply elected to shorten my current call to K4HLW. I own a local Technology Consulting Firm named Unified Technology Solutions, and still love technology.