About

This website is about all things amateur radio and scanning in the midwest — some reporting, some investigation, some commentary, and some fun.

I am an online journalist living in the greater Des Moines, Iowa area that focuses attention on wireless communications matters pertaining to the midwestern United States, including amateur radio, public safety scanning, legislation, and other topics relevant to the community.

The son of a now-retired Des Moines fire captain, I became exposed to the radio hobby at a young age when I began listening to an eight-crystal Uniden Bearcat scanner at home on my father’s duty days. My secret fascination with scanning public safety systems grew into several non-crystal handheld and base station scanners through my high school years.

On a whim, I decided to drive up to Ames one evening to take the test to receive my amateur radio license at Iowa State University in October 2008. I was issued the systematic callsign KD0FGW in the following weeks. My current callsign, K0KDS, was issued in February 2010 the letters in the suffix are derived from the initials of my first, middle, and last name.

In May 2009, I was elected as vice president of the Des Moines Radio Amateurs Association (http://www.dmraa.com), Iowa’s largest and oldest amateur radio club. I am also tasked as the public relations director for the DMRAA. The DMRAA was the first organization to establish a D-STAR system in Iowa (KD0IAN B/C/AD) with plans to expand into other parts of Iowa.

In February 2010, I was elected president of the Mid-Iowa Skywarn Association (http://www.midiowaskywarn.com), which coordinates severe weather spotters and manages the amateur radio linked repeater system for the 51-county warning area of the Des Moines National Weather Service office. With MISA, which is a smaller administration than the DMRAA, I am tasked as the public information director and a slew of other responsibilities relating to the net control station and the linked repeater network.

I am active on the VHF/UHF bands of the amateur radio spectrum, particularly with digital modes such as D-STAR and APRS. I can usually be found on the KD0IAN-B D-STAR module and occasionally on my Echolink home station node.

Scanning the public safety systems is still a passion for me in addition to amateur radio. I enjoy learning about the infrastructure behind all systems, small and large. I am fascinated by the advances of technology with regards to interoperability and the efficient use of spectrum.

I take a lot of pride in my city and my state. I grew up in Des Moines and I am currently residing in Ankeny, a commuter town just north of Des Moines. I went to Grand View University in Des Moines and majored in journalism, mass communication, and photography. I work as a contract photojournalist for various newsgathering agencies, but due to the state of the journalism industry, most of my time is spent working in the activities office of a suburban school district.

If you have any questions or have a topic that you want me to discuss, feel free to contact me by clicking here. You can remain anonymous if you wish. In addition to using the contact page, conversation on written topics can be held in the comments section of each post.