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No. 1: It was almost a
half-century ago when I first
received the certificate to the
left. I was 14 years old (1959)
and studying for my Novice ham
license. My shack was the attic
of our home. It contained an old
Arvin shortwave radio along
with various other repaired,
modified, or otherwise
customized, bare-chassis
radios. My antennas were
various end fed wires which ran
from the second floor window
out to any, and all, back yard
trees, in every direction of the
compass. Surprisingly, Dad was
very supportive of my hobby!
This cert was framed and
displayed with pride on the
operating room wall.

No. 2: This cert is an upgraded,
redesigned replacement version
of the first. It went into a frame
and on the wall, too.

This one looked more like a
diploma ... or something very
official.

No. 3: No longer "Shortwave" -
now we were upgraded to
"All-Band."

Ah, the pride of placing this on
the wall along side the others.

"All Band" ... can you imagine!?
What could be better than "All
Band."

No. 4: The ultimate honor.
Later in the certification
program, vanity call signs
became available. This
certificate joined the previous
three, on the shack wall also, to
express my passion and
involvement in this fascinating
hobby.

There is a very long and proud tradition of being certified as a Short Wave Monitor. This privilage was
awarded to qualified SWLs who met all the basic equipment and operational requirements and
demonstrated their ability to monitor, log, and report (via QSL format) international shortwave stations. In
the beginning, confirmation QSL cards were required to qualify for certification. Subsequently,
endorsements were available for the certificates.
Visit this excellent Web site: www.qsl.net/wb1gfh/swl.html