As you may have heard, Sid May, ET3SID, passed away on Tuesday.
I had the good fortune of meeting Sid and the students at ET3AA this past July
while I was in Addis Ababa. We had been in touch the past two years since I
have been through Addis a number of times and, I had been following the work
K3LP and others at the club station. What Sid was doing for Amateur Radio in
Ethiopia and the students at ET3AA was nothing short of amazing. That visit
was the most inspirational thing I've witnessed in years with regard to the
hobby.
In one instance Sid told me "sit down and operate." I got on 15 SSB and things
were a little slow. The kids were telling me they had not worked anyone in
awhile and were paying more attention to their computers than the radio. The
band started to open and pretty soon I had a pile-up on my hands. I looked
over my shoulder and a couple of them had come over to see what was going on.
At that point I told them "it's yours...you take over." They did and it was
clear they had been well coached as they handled the pile-up as if it was
second nature. Frankly I was surprised how well they did and with no
hesitation. Later it hit me, they walked away from the Internet to play radio!
I knew Sid's health was failing. Last week I received an e-mail and he said he
was slowing down. I wasn't sure if it was just a general comment or he was
saying something more. Tuesday morning I received an e-mail from one of the
students that he had passed. Very sad news. It's a big loss for the students
and Amateur Radio in Ethiopia. Hopefully his legacy can be continued but there
are some significant challenges to overcome. RIP OM. You did well!
Ken K4ZW
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