The RAC Constitution states that members of the RAC Board of Directors and the Executive can hold office for a maximum of three consecutive two-year terms, and at the end of 2017 two members of our Executive completed their third term in office: George Gorsline, VE3YV, International Affairs Officer; and Paul Burggraaf, VE3PRB, Chief Information and Technology Officer.

I want to thank George for keeping us informed of and involved in developments in the Amateur Radio community outside of Canada, and Paul for his tremendous efforts with our website – in particular managing our move to a new website during his term. These are only the latest of a long series of contributions to RAC and Amateur Radio in Canada each has made.

At the last Board of Directors meeting in odd numbered years (such as 2017), the RAC Board elects its President and Executive. At its meeting on November 16, I was elected to serve a second term as President. Present members of the Executive who were eligible for a further term agreed to continue in office and were elected to do so by the Board.

The Board also elected two new Executive members for the positions previously held by George and Paul: Serge Bertuzzo, VA3SB, as International Affairs Officer; and Lawrence Dobranski, VA5LD/VE3LGD, as Chief Information Technology Officer. Their new positions are effective on January 1, 2018. As can be seen from their bios below, both are active Radio Amateurs and have professional experience that provides a strong basis for the work they will do with RAC. Serge is a Director of Government Affairs at Bell Canada and is a regular participant at World Radiocommunication Conferences and associated international Preparatory Meetings. Lawrence has had an extensive career leading information and cyber security transformations in large, complex organizations. I am proud to welcome them into their new positions on the RAC Executive.

Serge Bertuzzo, VA3SB –
RAC International Affairs Officer

Serge Bertuzzo presently works as Director, Government Affairs for Bell Canada. He works closely with Innovation Science and Economic Development Canada and the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) on a variety of spectrum, technology and regulatory related matters. Serge has been involved in ITU activities for the past 20 years and actively participates as a Canadian delegate to various ITU-R/T meetings. His regular visits to Geneva, Switzerland also enable him to operate the ITU Amateur Radio station 4U1ITU on a regular basis.

Serge was initially licensed in October of 1971 as VE3CHZ. In 1981 he obtained his present call sign VA3SB and he has been primarily interested in CW and RTTY operation. While at college, in the early 1970s he was introduced to contesting by one of his professor’s – former TCA “Sports Page” columnist Bob Nash, VE3KZ – and has been hooked ever since. He actively participates in most major CW and RTTY contests. He is also an active member of the CW Ops (Membership #1488) and participates in the weekly CWT mini contests.

Serge’s Amateur Radio interests are quite varied and include QRP homebrewing, antenna experimentation, digital modes PSK31, JT-65 and FT8, CW/digital (RTTY) contesting and remote operation. He is currently quite active operating with the new FT-8 digital mode.

Over the past two years, Serge has been focusing on assembling a remote contesting station located at his summer cottage. The station consists of two stations: a K3s as well as a Kenwood TS-480. The antennas are a K4KIO six-band Hexbeam at 55 feet as well as inverted V antennas for 40-80 metres and 160 metres. He operates the station regularly while travelling on business.

Serge is a member of Radio Amateurs of Canada, the American Radio Relay League, the Quarter Century Wireless Association and CW Ops.

Lawrence Dobranski, VA5LD/VE3LGD –
RAC Chief Information Technology Officer

Lawrence Dobranski is a native of Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia. As a youth, he was very interested in sciences and technology, starting first with Meccano and then with his first Heathkit (an experimenters’ kit), a Christmas gift when he was in Grade 4. Lawrence’s interest in all things technical was cemented and developed through secondary school leading to his participation in two Canada-Wide Science Fairs.

Lawrence’s passion for technology led to a 30-plus-year career in Engineering. Lawrence started his career doing advanced radar research and now owns his own consulting firm providing cyber security professional engineering services. His career has focused entirely on information technology and radio technology systems. Lawrence holds advanced degrees in information security and has three patents.

Lawrence did not get his basic Amateur Radio certificate until 1991 when he received call sign VE3TVV. His Advanced and 12 WPM CW qualifications followed in rapid succession. Lawrence’s interest in Amateur Radio accelerated when his career took him to the Baltimore-Washington, DC area and he joined the Columbia Amateur Radio Association. This association exposed him to various aspects of Amateur Radio from public service to contesting and all points in between.

A highlight of Lawrence’s career was his 10 years at Nortel – all in technology leadership roles – and ending as the company wrapped up its business in Ottawa. Lawrence then accepted an appointment as the Director of ICT Security at the University of Saskatchewan. In Saskatoon, Lawrence once again became active in Amateur Radio joining both local clubs: the Saskatoon Amateur Radio Club (SARC) and the Meewasin Amateur Radio Society. He is currently completing a two-year term as President of SARC. Lawrence enjoys helping others learn about Amateur Radio and has helped teach SARC’s Basic and Advanced classes. He is also a member of the international Quarter Century Wireless Association.

Lawrence’s Amateur Radio interests are quite varied and include public service, emergency communications, Broadband-Hamnet, digital modes, contesting, technology innovation and portable operation. He is passionate about the new technology in Amateur Radio, such as JT-65 and FT-8, and he advocates strongly for experimentation. Currently, he is focusing on assembling a Single Operator 2 Radio (SO2R) contesting station built with 1990s-era transceivers. He is a backup net controller for the new Cross Canada C4FM Weekly Net.

Glenn MacDonell, VE3XRA
RAC President and Chair