Mary Cousins, ex-W1GSC, who was the first woman in Maine to obtain an Amateur Radio license, celebrated her 108th birthday on September 20. Now a resident of a care facility in the coastal fishing village of Deer Isle, Cousins was treated to a party complete with a cake decorated with images of local newspaper articles from 1908, the year she was born. The confection also bore an image of her 1933 “Amateur First” radio license — issued to Mary Sibyl Wallace, her maiden name, by the old Federal Radio Commission, when Cousins was 24. The FCC came into being the following year. Cousins’ old call sign has since been reissued at least once. Cousins said she operated Morse, although she does not remember the code anymore, and used to relay weather information in that mode.
Four generations of her family attended the celebration. Cousins, a native of nearby Stonington, Maine, worked as the town’s librarian, a school bus driver, and a telephone operator. She said she never stops learning new things.
Cousins told Bangor TV station WFVX that ham radio in the 1930s “was something that the girls did not do, and the boys were all doing it at the time, and I said, ‘I can do it too.’ And I did.”
Her cake also bore images of Stonington as it looked in 1908, when Teddy Roosevelt was the US president. Enlivening the party were 108 balloons and live piano music. Cousins received and read cards from many well-wishers, including US Sen Susan Collins.
Her son John told WFVX, “When she decides she’s going to do something, she’s going to do it. I think 100 was going to be the goal. She wanted to reach 100. She did. And then she said, ‘Well, might as well go for 105.’ I think she’s working on 110 now.”
VHF
Wouxun KG-879 Multifunctional wireless handheld two way radio
Wouxun KG-879 Description of Features 1. DTMF encoding and decoding 2. 105 groups DCS / 50 groups CTCSS 3. Wide /narrow bandwidth 4. Selection 5. ANI... Read more
Alinco DJ-G7T/E Tri-Band ( 144 , 430 and 1200MHz)
Get ready for action as you hear signals that you may never have heard before. The DJ-G7 tunes 0.530-1299.995MHz continuously, and you can enjo... Read more
ICOM ID-51A-PLUS2 Handheld Transceivers
ICOM ID-51A-PLUS2 Handheld ICOM ID-51A-PLUS2 Handheld Transceivers offer global D-STAR connectivity! These dual band transceivers have a super-compa... Read more
GMRS-50X1 – 50 Watt GMRS Mobile Radio from BTECH is Released
“A High Power 50 Watt GMRS Mobile Radio from BTECH is Released BTECH announced today the North American release of the BTECH GMRS-50X1. The GMRS... Read more
News
ARRL Interview Explains Background of Ham Radio in Space Film Short
Josh Tanner, the Australian filmmaker who produced the thriller Decommissioned by Perception Pictures, has explained how he came up with the idea to... Read more
Amateur Radio Helping to Fill Earthquake Report “Donut Holes”
An article describing how radio amateurs can help fill the information “donut hole” by providing post-earthquake “did you feel it” (DYFI) reports via ... Read more
Mystery Box! ARRL Expo At Home Surprise Pack
The ARRL offered surprise boxes as part of their ‘Expo at Home’ for the 2021 Orlando Hamcation. I ordered a mystery apparel pack and a mys... Read more
Review
ACOM – Manufacturers Showcase
ACOM team to discuss the latest amplifier technology. Tune in and ask the team questions. Read more
Ham Radio vs CB
Ham Radio vs CB, Citizen’s Band Radio – Ham Radio compared to CB frequencies and modes – which ones is better? Today let’s tal... Read more
Ham Radio Forms a Planet-Sized Space Weather Sensor Network
The article “Ham Radio Forms a Planet-Sized Space Weather Sensor Network,” appeared on February 9 in Eos, Earth & Space Science News — an American... Read more
SCU-LAN10 with FTdx101 / FTdx10 Overview
SCU-LAN10 with FTdx101 / FTdx10 Overview Read more
RFI NOISELOOP Portable Receive Antenna
RFI NOISELOOP Portable Receive Antenna Read more
An Aircraft Tale That Applies to Ham Radio
An Aircraft Tale That Applies to Ham Radio Read more