Rod Kieper W4SQT has passed - January 7 2020

Post date: Jan 13, 2020 9:18:44 PM

We are sad to report the passing of Rod Kieper, the founder and original trustee of the 145.43 W4SQT repeater. Rod was well known in the Richmond area, as an electrical engineer in the RF/uWave arena, working with AT&T Long Lines, and as a TV broadcast engineer at several TV stations, including the WRLH Channel 35 UHF TV station (circa 1982), which was the original host site on the 1250 foot TV tower in Midlothian Va. for the W4SQT repeater. Rod was a prime mover in creating and maintaining the W4SQT repeater for 30 years, along with legions of other amateurs in the Richmond area, as the repeater was updated numerous times. The Metropolitan Repeater Association was founded in 1981/1982 concurrent with the building of the WRLH Channel 35 Analog TV transmitter site and tower. The repeater call sign was changed to KG4MRA, when Rod retired in 2014. May he rest in peace.