California family (finally) makes it a perfect ham radio straight: The Duncan family of La Canada, California, has joined the select ranks of the all-ham family. "In the summer of 2000 we started working on Now You're Talking together with the hope to get everyone in the family licensed before school started in September," says "Dad," Courtney Duncan, N5BF. He and his wife Viann Duncan, WD5EHM, have been licensed since the 1970s. "Stuff happens, however," he continued. "We didn't finish during the summer, and it turned out to be a tough year. He said the kids found it tough to schedule study sessions around their schoolwork and other activities, and he and his wife had a lot on their plates as well. "Finally, in February, I gave up and put Now You're Talking away in the attic. After a couple of weeks, the kids noticed, however, and, wanting to finish what they had started and put so much into, got together secretly and continued their studies so as to surprise me for Father's Day 2001." He said the day before Father's Day, his kids got him to drive them to a test site at a Red Cross Center. "While I donated blood down the hall, Viannah, the oldest and the ringleader of the secret society, passed her Element 2 exam, but her brother and sister missed by a couple of questions each." With the secret out, the family worked with the younger siblings to who subsequently passed their tests on visits to exam sessions during the TRW Swapmeet in June and August. "None of them is much interested in the ham radio-related junk mail they are getting now; they claim they did it for me," he said. "But it sure is convenient when, for example, the two girls come in from a high school band competition after midnight, that they are able to check in or when Viannah--who also has a brand-new driver's license--wants to borrow the family car." He reports the family hangs out on the WR6JPL 445.20 MHz repeater in the Pasadena/La Canada area. The machine is sponsored by the club at NASA-JPL-Caltech, where Courtney Duncan works. Congratulations!

(L-R) Katy Duncan, KG6HUI, age 14; John Duncan, KG6HCO, age 11; Viannah Duncan, KG6GXW, age 16; Mom, Viann Duncan, WD5EHM, licensed 1977, and Courtney Duncan, N5BF, originally licensed as WN5GRZ in 1972.

This piece originally appeared as an article in the ARRL News online but was lost in their website upgrade in 2009.

http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2001/12/13/1/?nc=1#California