Local nine-year-old earns her Ham Radio license

Community NewsShowing off her license, Paige is ready to hit the airwaves.Courtesy of Brian CurtissBy Kathleen Barnard, special to cleveland.comBAY VILLAGE, Oh. - On September 27, nine-year-old Paige sat down for the Technician Class Amateur Radio Exam and answered 33 of 35 questions correctly. Just two days later, the Federal Communications Commission issued her a callsign of her very own! A callsign is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. Paige now joins her father (callsign N8QAR) and her mother (callsign KN4DYZ), making the Curtiss household a three-operator home.“Ham radio” is the popular name for the Amateur Radio Service, a community of volunteer radio enthusiasts who communicate over specially assigned frequencies. Hams pursue the hobby to advance the art and science of radio communication, build emergency communications skills, and promote international goodwill. Operators of Ham Radio channels come from all walks of life and can be found in nearly every country. In the United States, anyone who wants to get on the air must pass a written exam and receive a license from the FCC. There are roughly 750,000 licensed amateurs nationwide, and Paige is now one of them.After passing a lengthy exam, Paige, a student at Westerly Elementary in Bay Village, gets her own callsign.Courtesy of Brian CurtissAs for what comes next, Paige has big plans. She looks forward to making new friends over the airwaves, working with her parents on communication projects, and serving alongside them as a radio volunteer.