All FCC licensed amateur radio operators are ARES eligible; you do not have to be an ARRL member to be an ARES member. You may actively participate from your home, or if you register as a Washington State Emergency Worker you may participate in field training exercises and be deployed away from your home, including at an Emergency Operations Center. To become so registered by Pierce County’s Department of Emergency Management, you must consent to a background check of law enforcement records and complete FEMA independent study courses (IS 100, 200, and 700). Those online courses are accessed at: https://training.fema.gov/is/crslist.aspx?lang=en&all=true
When you complete the information below, please indicate if you do or do not wish to register as a Washington State Emergency Worker. If you do, our membership coordinator will send you registration instructions. In either case, new members will be contacted by ARES leaders.