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A NEW APPROACH TO ARES THE NEED TO ORGANIZE A HIGH DEGREE OF LOCAL CLUB
INVOLVEMENT IN BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA, LED TO THE CREATION OF A NONPROFIT
TO MAXIMIZE RESOURCE EFFICIENCY.  DAN FISHER, AI4GK LIKE MANY LOCALES,
BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA, IS WORKING TO REDEFINE ITS COMMITMENT TO EMERGENCY
OPERATIONS, COMMUNICATIONS, AND TECHNOLOGY.  THE AREA IS KNOWN AS FLORIDAS
SPACE COAST AND IS HOME TO THE US SPACE FORCE, WHERE ROCKETS ARE BEING
LAUNCHED ON A NEAR WEEKLY BASIS SOMETIMES EVEN DAILY.  BREVARD COUNTY HAS
AT LEAST 11 AMATEUR RADIO CLUBS IN AN AREA WITH A POPULATION OF
APPROXIMATELY 600,000.  ITS GEOGRAPHY IS UNIQUE IN THAT IT EXTENDS 72 MILES
FROM NORTH TO SOUTH, AND IS ABOUT 20 MILES WIDE.  THESE FACTORS MAKE IT
DIFFICULT FOR THE COUNTYS CLUBS TO COORDINATE.  ESTABLISHING AN EMERGENCY
SERVICE FOR YEARS, BREVARD COUNTYS AMATEUR RADIO EMERGENCY SERVICE ARES WAS
MOSTLY SUPPORTED BY THE COUNTYS AMATEUR RADIO CLUBS.  THE NUMBER OF CLUBS
IN THE COUNTY ADDED TO THE DIFFICULTY OF INTERACTING WITH ALL OF THEM.  THE
EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER EOC MANAGER AT THE TIME, BOB LAY, ASKED THE
CLUBS TO ESTABLISH A SINGLE POINT OF CONTACT WITH THE AMATEUR RADIO
COMMUNITY.  AS A RESULT, BREVARD EMERGENCY AMATEUR RADIO SERVICES BEARS WAS
ESTABLISHED IN 1996.  BEARS WAS A CONSORTIUM OF CLUBS THAT WOULD WORK
TOGETHER, AND ITS MEMBERSHIP CONSISTED OF A REPRESENTATIVE FROM EACH
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