ARRL President congratulates
centenarian life member W3DHL
ARRL President Jim Haynie, W5JBP, has congratulated ARRL Life Member
Zeke Dorsey, W3DHL, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, who turned 100 January
15.
Writing on behalf of the League's Board of Directors, officers and staff,
Haynie wished Dorsey "the very best on reaching this milestone."
The ARRL President also thanked W3DHL for his loyal support of the League
as a Life Member and Volunteer Examiner as well as for being an AMSAT
supporter.
"We deeply appreciate your keen interest in radio electronics and
your service to welcoming new hams into Amateur Radio as a Volunteer Examiner,"
Haynie said.
"You have seen decades of progress and change in our serviceand added
your personal achievements to the pride we all feel in ourservice. Thank
you for your years of dedication."
Friend Brian Roberts, K9VKY, alerted the League to Dorsey's 100th birthday.
He tells ARRL that Dorsey's life has been--and continues to be--a full
one.
Dorsey got his start in Amateur Radio while still a teenager attending
Duquesne University in 1921, Roberts recounts. "Zeke has seen a lot
of things come and go over the years," he says. According to Roberts,
Dorsey--a Sewickley, Pennsylvania, native--cobbled together his first
spark gap transmitter from a Ford spark coil, powering it from homemade
glass jar batteries. A galena detector was his receiving set. He subsequently
upgraded to a 1 kW rotary spark transmitter and a regenerative receiver,
and, not incidentally, got his license, 8DHL, in 1922. Owing to regulatory
changes, he later became W3DHL.
"Zeke's interest in Amateur Radio flourished along with radio development
in the 1920s," Roberts says. Dorsey also developed an interest in
aviation and got his pilot's license. When World War II broke out, he
enlisted in the US Army Air Corps "at the rather advanced age of
37," Roberts notes.
"Because of his specialized knowledge in aviation and radio, Uncle
Sam waived Zeke's basic training and immediately sent him overseas to
India to set up radio navigation aids and homing devices in the China-Burma-India
theater of operations," he says. "As the war progressed, Zeke
later served in the Pacific theater, setting up and servicing radio beacons
for the air forces."
Over time, Dorsey let his Amateur Radio license lapse. When he wanted
to return to his Amateur Radio roots, however, he discovered that his
original W8DHL and later W3DHL call signs had been reissued and no longer
were available. But when W3DHL became available again, he was able to
reclaim it, thanks to help from the Quarter Century Wireless Association
(QCWA) and a 1920s callbook.
Roberts says Dorsey remains quite energetic, still driving his own car,
mowing the lawn, shoveling snow and maintaining an electronics repair
shop. The Amateur Extra-class licensee also is still on the air.
"Zeke continues to enjoy Amateur Radio and keeps a weekly schedule
with longtime friend Bob Ross, KA3AVB," reports Roberts. "Zeke
Dorsey is a true gentleman, who passes a remarkable milestone in personal
achievement as well as 80-plus years in Amateur Radio."
Source: ARRL Letter - courtesy of The
American Radio Relay League
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