The Man Behind The Mic
Joe McCormick - K6UMA
Mary and I were both born in San Diego and met in high school. We married the day before Christmas, 1942, while I was a cadet in the Army Air Corps. We have four children, two boys and two girls. We also have 9 grandchildren and 3 great-grand children, all of whom live in the San Diego Area.
I was in the Army Air Corps from 1942 thru 1945 and flew 57 combat missions in the Mediterranean theater ( flying out of Sicily, Italy and Corsica) as a pilot in B-25 Mitchell bombers. When my tour ended I elected to fly a war-weary B-25G home instead of sailing back to the states on a troop ship. I've always had a problem with sea sickness. My route took me down thru Africa, across the Atlantic with a stop at Ascension Island, and finally up the coast of South America. I continued serving as an instructor pilot in South Carolina until being discharged in 1945.
In 1947 I joined the Army National Guard and was called to active duty in 1950. I spent the tax payers' money at Fort Lewis,Wa, Camp Stoneman,Ca and on the lovely island of Okinawa. In 1953 I resigned my commission as a captain and returned to civilian life.
I worked at various jobs --- office work, electronics mechanic, computer programmer, systems analyst, to name a few --- in Naval Civil Service until retiring in 1970.
My ham radio interests blossomed in 1956. My oldest son, John, came home and said he had asked an amateur radio operator how to become a ham. The man told him to go home and learn Morse code. I built a code practice oscillator and Mary taught him the code out of a book. At the tender age of twelve, John became KN6ULZ and I earned the call KN6UMA at age 34.
My first mobile rig was Gonset 66 receiver, Elmac AF-67 transmitter and a PE103 power supply. The antenna was a Webster Bandspanner mounted on the rear left wing of a Red, 1959 Chevy. I operated 75 meter AM in those days.
Mary and I bought our first motor home in 1970. By 1979 we were seasoned RVers and went on a seven month, 11,000 mile trip. Our current motor home, a 2000, twenty-six foot Lazy Daze, is our sixth motor home.
We attended our first RV Service Net Rally in 1980 at the foothills area east of Yuma, Arizona. We hosted our first rally in 1987 at Woods Valley Campground, Valley Center, California. I have served as a net control station since the mid eighties.