ARRL headquarters welcomes new
Media and Public Relations Manager
Allen Pitts, W1AGP, is the newest member of the ARRL Headquarters staff.
An Amateur Extra class licensee who lives in New Britain, Connecticut,
Pitts came aboard September 20 as the League's new Media and Public Relations
Manager, succeeding Jennifer Hagy, N1TDY, who was a member of
the HQ staff for 10 years. As Pitts sees it, he's arriving at the League
at a critical juncture for Amateur Radio.
"I know of no time in history that our service has been under greater
threats, nor any other time in which we have so many opportunities to
shine," he said. Pitts emphasizes that while he takes his public
relations role most seriously, he also wants it understood that he's an
active radio
amateur and "not just a PR person."
Pitts comes to the ARRL after a three-year stint as executive director
of The Box Project Inc - a national, member-based charity that matches
volunteers with families needing help. For eight years prior to that,
he directed a multi-program human services agency that, among other things,
was responsible for emergency shelters, transitional living, a court alternative
sanctions program, emergency food services and an AIDS respite program.
A radio amateur for five years, he's no stranger to the ARRL Field Organization,
having served as an ARES District Emergency Coordinator and later as Connecticut's
Section Emergency Coordinator. He's also an ARRL Assistant Section Manager.
Pitts holds a bachelor's degree from the University of South Carolina
and a master's degree from the Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary
(he served congregations in Kansas and Connecticut in the 1970s and 1980s).
He and his wife, Donna, have three grown children and six grandchildren.
They're currently "raising" an English mastiff named Dozer,
who, Pitts says, "believes the radio room couch belongs to her."
Pitts is active on HF, VHF and UHF. Although primarily a phone operator,
he says he tries to keep up at a "basic level" on CW whenever
he can. He holds DXCC.
In addition to his interest in Amateur Radio, Pitts is an active member
of the Society for Creative Anachronism and has gained "notoriety"
- as he put it - as an expert with medieval crossbows, holding top state
and national
rankings.
Source: ARRL Letter - courtesy of The
American Radio Relay League
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