ROBERTSDALE, Ala. — For Charles Vasut, Ham (short for amateur) radio came naturally.

“It was 1948 and a man selling insurance was a ham radio operator and talked me into it,” said Vasut, seated in the “radio room” of his Robertsdale home.

Vasut has collected a file box stuffed with “QSL” cards from around the world. QSL are cards that Ham operators end each other to confirm a contact. QSL means either “do you confirm receipt of my transmission?” or “I confirm receipt of your transmission” in radio speak. While some are plain, many are quite elaborate, with photos of local scenes, and all contain the place, date and time of the contact.

“It was an interesting hobby,” said Vasut, who got his first license in 1948.

For those interested in learning more about amateur radio, which is an interesting hobby and a potential lifesaver during natural disasters, head to Garrett Park in Robertsdale from 1 p.m. June 27 to 1 p.m. June 28 to see a “Field Day.”

The Field Day involves Ham operators from throughout central and south Baldwin County, The South Baldwin Amateur Radio Club will construct two short wave radio stations at the park. They will set up two radios and emergency power sources and antennas – preparing to test their abilities in a 70-year-old nationwide event, says Lou and Katie Aiken of Orange Beach. The group will be using portable generators to power their radios (regular electrical outlets are OK for things like lights) Temporary antennas will be shot up and over trees in the park.

While the SBARC is competing with other groups to se how many “contacts” they can make with other operators, in that 24-hour period, Katie says that the public, especially children, will be invited to try to make a contact.

“We will put children right on the air,” said Katie. “We want the public to come. Last year, we had a youngster who made contact with Hawaii and Alaska.”

She added that the club will post a map and mark all the contacts.

“We love for people to come and have a look.”

While Ham radio may seem quaint and antiquated in this day and age of cell phones, Internet and instant communication, remember this — a Ham operator can set up, receive signals and broadcast to the world with minimal equipment. Radios can be run from generators and car batteries, so when a storm or other disaster interrupts electrical power or other services, a Ham operator can keep passing along messages. Most emergency shelters have a Ham operator to keep communication lines open.

For Kathy Olesek of Loxley, being a Ham has meant being able to call for help any where, any time.

“My husband, John, is an operator,” explained Olesek, and I got licensed shortly after we married.” She explained that when the couple first married, she was driving a good distance to work and having two-way communication made everyone feel safer.

“For me, I’ve mostly communicated in the United States,” said Olesk. “It’s something good to know how to do in an emergency.”

Vasut, a Robertsdale native worked at Brookley Field, and “got into electronics.”

A friend asked him to work in a new industry —TV repair, and Vasut agreed. This was in the days when televisions had massive and hot “tubes” that had to be evaluated one by one. Transistors and other improvements came later. Vasut kept up with the technology and retired in 1995. Vasut married in 1951.

“We lived in a three-room apartment then,” he said.

Because there was no room for his extensive radio gear, “I let it go,” he said.

He got re-liscensed in 1960 and has been active ever since. While Morse code scares many away from a Ham license, Vasut and the Aikens say that requirement has been dropped.

Vasut is involved in the MARS (Military Affiliate Radio System) program. The purpose of the MARS program is to provide assistance to normal military communications channels. Vasut remembers sending many a “MARSgram” to service members during the Vietnam war.

The test for many Hams comes in a disaster. Vasut has a motor home with a generator and can operate “24 hours” a day in an emergency.

“There have been so many,“ Vasut says when asked about the number of storms he’s helped provide communications.

He and his daughters, Vickie Linnie and Teresa Ramey, have manned communication centers and he’s worked with another daughter, Robin Cillo, her husband Nick and his daughter Denise Vasut at the Central Baldwin Middle School.

“Unless we’re forced to evacuate, I’ll be in a shelter,” said Vasut.