SB SPCL @ ARL $ARLX017   
   ARLX017 ARRL Honorary Vice President, Director Emeritus Tod Olson, K0TO (SK)   
      
   ZCZC AX17   
   QST de W1AW   
   Special Bulletin 17  ARLX017   
   > From ARRL Headquarters   
   Newington CT  November 15, 2016   
   To all radio amateurs   
      
   SB SPCL ARL ARLX017   
   ARLX017 ARRL Honorary Vice President, Director Emeritus Tod Olson, K0TO (SK)   
      
   ARRL Honorary Vice President and Director Emeritus Tod Olson, K0TO (ex-W0IYP),   
   of Minnesota and Idaho, died on November 12 after battling cancer for several   
   years. An ARRL Life Member, he was 83.   
   He began his volunteer service to ARRL in 1974 as the Minnesota Section   
   Communications Manager. He became Dakota Division Vice Director in 1976, and   
   then Director in 1982. In 1986, the ARRL Board   
   of Directors elected him as ARRL Vice President of International Affairs, a   
   post he held until 1990. He again served as Dakota Division Director from 1994   
   until 1999. The ARRL Board of Directors named him an ARRL Director Emeritus in   
   2000 and an ARRL Honorary Vice President in 2003.   
      
   Olson held a BS from the University of Minnesota, and an MPH from the   
   University of Michigan. He belonged to the Minnesota Wireless Association and   
   the Eagle Rock Amateur Radio Club. An active contester, he was inducted last   
   May into the CQ Contest Hall of Fame. Earlier this year, he entered hospice   
   care.   
      
   "Even through his entire illness, he was a positive force for everyone who   
   knew him," ARRL First Vice President and immediate past Dakota Division   
   Director Greg Widin, K0GW, said. On the CQ-Contest reflector, former Dakota   
   Division Vice Director Hans Brakob, K0HB, called Olson "my mentor, my teacher,   
   sometimes my critic, and always a true and steady friend," and said, "I feel   
   like I have lost my brother." Former ARRL CEO David Sumner, K1ZZ, knew Olson   
   well and offered these reflections:   
      
   "For young Tod Olson, 1952 was a life-altering year. He married the love of   
   his life - and he became a radio amateur. For the next 64 years these two   
   events set the course of Tod's life. It is easy to imagine Tod's hopes and   
   dreams as he and Jackie began their life together, and to rejoice at how fully   
   they were met: Five children, a successful and fulfilling career, and   
   community service as the mayor of Long Lake, Minnesota. A lifelong interest in   
   technology influenced Tod's career as well as his choice of avocation; he   
   retired in 1991 as Director of the Information Technology Department at   
   General Mills.   
      
   "As he opened the envelope from the FCC containing his first license, it is   
   unlikely that even Tod could imagine where Amateur Radio would take him, but   
   he tackled his new avocation with the same   
   energy and devotion as to family, career, and community. The Amateur Radio   
   community was enriched by his selfless efforts and his life was enriched in   
   return.   
      
   "As W0IYP, Tod soon began making his mark through local radio clubs and   
   on-the-air activity. His passion for competitive operating, particularly in   
   the ARRL November Sweepstakes, led him in 1973 to be the founding editor of   
   National Contest Journal (NCJ). In 1976 he became K0TO. He was inducted into   
   the CQ Contest Hall of Fame largely on the strength of his vision for NCJ and   
   his willingness to do the enormous work that it took to launch, edit, and   
   distribute a print publication in the days before personal computers.   
      
   "Tod served on every standing committee of the ARRL Board and twice was   
   chairman of the Administration  Finance Committee. In recognition of his   
   extraordinary contributions the ARRL Board elected him as Honorary Vice   
   President in 2003.   
      
   "In retirement, Tod and Jackie divided their time between Minnesota and Idaho,   
   and it was in Idaho Falls that Tod chose to enter hospice and to spend his   
   final weeks with Jackie and other family members. His countless friends in   
   Amateur Radio send their condolences to the family and our thanks for having   
   shared him with us for so many years."   
      
   A memorial service will held later in Minnesota.   
      
   NNNN   
   /EX   
      
   )\/(ark   
      
   Always Mount a Scratch Monkey   
   Do you manage your own servers? If you are not running an IDS/IPS yer doin' it   
   wrong...   
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   ---   
    * Origin:  (1:3634/12.73)