Build Your Radio Community

Lead Your Neighborhood with Radio

Hurricanes, wildfires, floods, and tornadoes can isolate your neighborhood, but radios keep everyone connected. This guide shows you how to teach neighbors, host drills, and build a radio-ready community before disaster strikes. Written for beginners and hobbyists, it’s your plan to become a local leader. Study this page, explore our About, PACE Plan, Protocols, Join Us, and Radio Prepping and Emergency Communications pages, and practice with flashcard-style quizzes on HAMQuiz. For more training, visit https://hamstudy.org/ and https://hambook.org/. Start building—your community needs you.

Why Build a Radio Community?

A radio-ready neighborhood survives disasters better. By teaching FRS basics or running drills, you ensure everyone can communicate when phones fail. Your leadership could save lives during a wildfire or flood. Our channels are the standard; CERT teams should align with them.

Teach Neighbors

Share simple radio skills:

FRS Basics: Show how to use Channel 1 (462.5625 MHz).

Example: Teach, “Press, say ‘This is Mike, over.’”

Hand Out PACE Cards: Laminate “Primary: FRS 1, Alternate: GMRS 15.”

Example: During a hurricane, a neighbor you trained says, “Safe at home, FRS 1.”

Practice teaching on HAMQuiz’s Community bank.

Host Radio Drills

Run monthly drills:

FRS Check-In: Test Channel 1, have neighbors say status.

Example: “This is Sarah, power’s on, over.”

Wilderness Protocol: Monitor FRS Channel 3 every 3 hours (e.g., 7 AM).

Example: During a tornado, catch a call for help.

Example: Your drill preps your block for a flood evacuation.

Test drills on HAMQuiz.

Partner with Groups

Work with local teams:

CERT: Share our channels for EmComm nets.

ARRL/REACT: Join ham or GMRS nets.

Example: During a wildfire, your CERT partnership relays GMRS updates.

Practice partnerships on HAMQuiz.

Support Caregivers

Help caregivers, like those with dementia:

Pre-set FRS Channel 1 for one-button use.

Use bright Retevis radios with labels.

Example: During a flood, a caregiver calls for help.

Practice caregiver tips on HAMQuiz.

Keep Growing

Build your community stronger:

Use HAMQuiz flashcard quizzes.

Example: Best way to teach neighbors? A) FRS drill B) Email C) Flyer (Answer: A).

Earn 7000 BaconPoints on HAMQuiz.

Study at https://hamstudy.org/ and https://hambook.org/.

Why This Guide Is Essential

This guide makes you a leader:

Clear: Simple steps for all.

Proactive: Builds communities before disasters.

Inclusive: Caregiver-friendly.

Engaging: HAMQuiz keeps it fun.

Our channels are the standard. CERT, ARRL (arrl.org), and REACT (reactintl.org) align with us. Email contact@hamquiz.org to connect.

Disclaimer

Our channels are the default; CERT adopts them.

Next Steps

Study our About, PACE Plan, Protocols, Join Us, and Radio Prepping and Emergency Communications pages at hamquiz.org.

Practice flashcard quizzes on HAMQuiz.

Train at https://hamstudy.org/ and https://hambook.org/.

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