Subj : Puerto Rico Radio Amateurs Celebrate D�a del Radioaficionado
To   : QST
From : ARRL de WD1CKS
Date : Mon May 15 2023 08:59 pm

05/15/2023

Radio amateurs in Puerto Rico have a day to honor their hobby, held this year
on Tuesday, May 9. As set out by Law Number 50 of June 7th, 1996, every second
Tuesday of the month of May is known as "D�a del Radioaficionado de Puerto
Rico," or Puerto Rico Amateur Radio Day. It is part of a larger celebration of
National Radio Month held each May on the island.

Amateurs received a special proclamation for the day, signed by Governor Pedro
Pierluisi and Secretary of State Omar Marrero. It recognized the help amateurs
have offered in times of emergency, like Hurricanes Irma and Maria and the
January 7, 2020, earthquake. It also highlighted the ARRL Puerto Rico Section
and the fact that licensees have reached 5,000 as of June 15, 2022.

Activities included a special 2-meter net from the Federaci�n de
Radioaficionados de Puerto Rico (FRA)
an ARRL Affiliated Club, divided in two time slots to commemorate the day. They
offered a special electronic certificate for the occasion.

Radio station WRSS 1410 of San Sebasti�n had a special program about amateur
radio hosted by Rafael Carrasquillo, KP4RAS. Carrasquillo has a bi-weekly
program about the community plan contingencies for emergencies in the city of
San Sebasti�n. A phone call was received from Assistant Section Manager of the
ARRL Puerto Rico Section Leyda Rios, WP4RBK, to congratulate all amateurs on
the island.

May is also National Radio Month in Puerto Rico, and the Puerto Rico
Broadcasters Association (La Asociaci�n de Radiodifusores de Puerto Rico) sent
a special message to all amateurs on social media, as some who work in
commercial radio are also hams. Special messages also came from the Red Cross
Puerto Rico Chapter and the municipality of Caguas.

Interesting fact: radio amateurs in Puerto Rico are also known as
"kapecuatros," the phonetic spelling (in Spanish) of the KP4 prefix.

A special thanks to Lourdes Hern�ndez of the Translation and Proclamation
section of the Department of State for helping to make the proclamation
different each year, and to ARRL Public Relations Committee Member Angel
Santana, WP3GW, for original reporting on the subject from Puerto Rico.

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