I was shocked and saddened to see Tom's message regarding the passing of Pete Hoover.
In addition to those AMSAT connections which Tom mentioned, I want add the fact that Pete, in the name of the Hoover Foundation, made a significant financial contribution to our efforts on Phase 3D.
When I was asked to become AMSAT's President in late 1991, Doug Loughmiller and I made several visits to West Coast hams who we thought might contribute to our cause. One of these visits was to Pete Hoover.
That particular visit did not bring immediate results, however several years later Pete called me on the phone and offered to match all contributions we received for Phase 3D from that time until the end of that year - up to $50,000.
As a result, we increased our efforts and informed everyone of the matching amount that their contributions would receive. Therefore, each month, I sent a letter to the Hoover Foundation with information on the contributions received that month. And every moth we received a check from the Foundation for an equal amount. That went on for about six mouths until we had received Hoover Foundation checks totaling $106,000.
Pete Hoover and his family foundation certainly made a significant contribution to AMSAT-NA's portion of the Phase 3D effort.
I will be among those who morn the loss of this fine and generous member of our ham.fraternity.
73,
Bill Tynan, W3XO LM 10
----- Original Message ----- From: "Tom Clark, K3IO" tom.k3io@gmail.com To: "AMSAT BB" amsat-bb@amsat.org; "Board of Directors" bod@amsat.org; "senior-officers" Senior-officers@amsat.org; "AMSAT Advisors" advisors@amsat.org Sent: Saturday, February 13, 2010 9:54 PM Subject: [Advisors] SK: Herbert "Pete" Hoover III, W6ZH
It is with much sadness that AMSAT notes the passing on Feb.4 of Herbert "Pete" Hoover III, W6ZH at his home in San Marino, CA. Pete was the grandson of former President Herbert Hoover. Pete's W6ZH call was inherited from his father who served as ARRL President; Pete's original call was W6APW. He was AMSAT Life Member #65.
In the 1970's, Pete and Bill Eitel (W6UF) saw that AMSAT and amateur satellites were a significant wave of amateur radio's future. In addition to making substantial contributions, they worked with the ARRL to form the ARRL Foundation in 1976. Beginning in 1978 Pete served on the ARRL Long Range Planning Committee.
I remember the hospitality Pete and his wife Meridith showed to Jan King (W3GET) and me on several occasions when we dropped by his home in San Marino to discuss AMSAT's future.
Pete was always very active in the American Red Cross. When the Pacsat concept was being developed, Harold Price (NK6K) and I called on Pete at the Hoover Foundation offices to discuss the concept of a store-and-forward messaging satellite to provide medical communications to a remote area. At Pete's instigation, we began working with VITA (Volunteers in Technical Assistance) and our Pacsat concept bore fruit when UoSAT-3 was re-badged as Healthsat-1 (see http://space.skyrocket.de/doc_sdat/healthsat-2.htm).
I last saw Pete at Dayton two years ago. I was in the chow line when I heard a "Hey Tom" from a nearby table. Pete was spending most of his time at his retirement home on Maui and he looked very fit and had an incredible tan! While I was munching on a hamburger we has a great face-to-face QSO. He told me that he was still on the air, now using an Elecraft radio.
I'll miss Pete's enthusiasm and friendship. I could always count on his thoughtful advice.
73 de Tom, K3IO (ex W3IWI
Additional details on Pete can be found on the ARRL web site at http://www.arrl.org/?artid=9426 and in this week's ARRL newsletter (http://www.arrl.org/arrlletter/?issue=2010-02-11). _______________________________________________ Via the Advisors mailing list at AMSAT.ORG courtesy of AMSAT-NA http://amsat.org/mailman/listinfo/advisors