Silent Key – W4QM, Dale Streiter

I was saddened to read of the passing of another old friend recently …

SB SPCL @ ARL $ARLX002
ARLX002 Past ARRL Southeastern Division Director H. Dale Strieter,
W4QM (SK)

ZCZC AX02
QST de W1AW
Special Bulletin 2 ARLX002
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT January 28, 2020
To all radio amateurs

SB SPCL ARL ARLX002
ARLX002 Past ARRL Southeastern Division Director H. Dale Strieter,
W4QM (SK)

Past ARRL Southeastern Division Director Harmon “Dale” Strieter,
W4QM (ex-W4DQS), of Cocoa Beach, died on January 6. An ARRL Life
Member, he was 92 and a founding member of the Maxim Society.

Strieter was ARRL Southeastern Division Director from 1970 until
1973.

During World War II, he served as US Maritime Service radio officer
in the Pacific. After the war, he received a bachelor’s degree in
electrical engineering from Michigan State. He got his amateur radio
license in 1947. Strieter later earned an MSEE from Michigan State,
and then worked as an audio engineer.

In 1958, Strieter moved to Cocoa Beach to work for General Electric,
a NASA contractor, and he served as the guidance engineer on the
Mercury and Gemini manned spaceflight missions.

Strieter was a prolific DXpeditioner. After 20 years with GE, he
returned to sea in 1979 as a radio officer in the US Merchant Marine
on a ship generally anchored at Chagos. As VQ9QM, Strieter logged
more than 200,000 contacts from nearby Diego Garcia, between 1986
and 2001. He retired in 2002.
NNNN
/EX

I first met Dale when I worked as a contractor for Ford Aerospace on Diego Garcia. He was one of a diverse group of hams there. Some were Navy personnel, some Merchant Marine like himself, and others were contractor personnel, like me. Over time, he became a close friend, and we shared many hours together, operating from the club station there on the island, sharing meals and drinks, or just sitting and talking. He was an interesting person! I was in awe of his CW prowess!

One morning, we woke up and the lagoon was empty of ships, and the normally deserted airfield was full of B-52s and KC-10s. Desert Storm was underway.

I eventually left the island and returned to the States, and like many good friendships, distance caused this one to lapse. Still, I thought about Dale and all the others every now and then, and reminisced about the “good old days.”

Rest in peace, old friend!

73 de Dick N4BC