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My story about joining NRC is a bit different...I had joined ASWLC just four months before, after taking up the hobby of DXing in October of 1981. I sent in my dues check to Mike Knitter, who had just assumed the duties of publisher and manager for NRC. Terry Klasek saw my name as among the new members, and dropped by my old Lamplight Lane QTH in the fall of 1982. In due time, I got to meet local DXers Rich Eddie (God rest his soul), Bob Flick, Jeff King, Rick Overmann and Roger Giannini, among others. I also met visiting DXers Richard Wood and Dale Park when they passed through St. Louis in the mid 1980s. I later DXed from Woodstock and Marietta, GA; there, I met television DXer John Broomall (then living in Woodstock; he now calls Gwinnett County home) and BCB DXer Bill Alisauskas of Douglasville. I got into the DX hobby more gung-ho than even Rich Eddie did when I returned to St. Louis in 1992; I passed the 900-station milestone on AM on December 27, 2004 (I now have 906 at this location as of March 7, 2005); 200 of those were logged during the 1993-94 DX season. I switched from NRC to IRCA in 1994; I haven't looked back. Since returning to Missouri, I've met DXers like Frank Merrill, Ernie Wesolowski, John Tudenham, John Callarman, Bill Dvorak...even Diane Levesque made it to a 1998 get-together (hosted by John Callarman) in Mount Vernon, IL.
Of all the DXers that have passed on since I took up the hobby, the one that shocked many DXers was the passing of John Clements in December 1983. I was somewhat shocked when I heard from Terry that Rich Eddie had passed on...I didn't get the news until seven years AFTER THE FACT. I didn't see his obituary in the local paper, either. The passing of Rich Eddie and what happened to him made me glad that I didn't get married (I almost did twelve years ago...but I saw the signs that my now ex-fiancee was abusive before deciding on a final date).
I'm also a member of WTFDA and NASWA, along with ARRL and two local Amateur Radio clubs, the St. Louis and Suburban Radio Club (SLSRC) and the Lewis and Clark Radio Club (LCRC) of Godfrey, IL. I'm also on the ASWLC E-mail list. It's sad to hear that someone like Don would lose his life...even more so if it's a house fire.
73, Eric (N0UIH)
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