Amateur radio for northeast Iowa — where tradition and new technology share the same frequency.
Amateur radio — "ham radio" — lets you talk across town or across the world without the internet or a cell network, and it's the hobby thousands of Iowans quietly rely on when storms knock out phone lines. No experience needed to get curious: stop by a meeting, ask questions, and we'll help you get your license.
W0OEL in Morse Code — Connecting ham radio's past to its future
We're a nonprofit amateur radio club serving northeast Iowa, with a focus on the rural areas that don't have backup communications when a storm or outage hits. We work directly with county Emergency Management offices to make sure someone is on the air when it matters.
Outside of disaster response, we're a working club: monthly meetings, ARRL Field Day, a holiday party, public service event support, and the occasional fox hunt to keep our direction-finding skills sharp. We're also pushing into newer territory — APRS, AREDN mesh networking, and Meshtastic — proof that tradition and new technology can share the same club
Donations are tax-deductible — we're recognized by the IRS as a 501(c)3 nonprofit, and we're proud to be affiliated with the ARRL, the national association for amateur radio.
Our repeater is the backbone of daily club traffic and the first thing that goes live in an emergency activation. VHF, UHF/DMR, and Winlink — all on one tower north of Fayette.
View repeater details →A self-contained, deployable communications trailer we bring to public service events and disaster response — antennas, power, and radios ready to set up on arrival.
See the trailer →Meetings, Field Day, fox hunts, and public service events — synced straight from the club calendar.
Whether you're newly licensed or have held a callsign for decades, there's a place for you in the Rural Iowa Amateur Radio Club.
Join the club