Kevin Thomas W1DED is one of the newest board members guiding Parks on the Air through its next chapter — but his connection to ham radio stretches back nearly 50 years. Licensed as a teenager in 1977, Kevin grew up around Heathkit gear built by his father, WA1YOA, before life, career, and raising three children pulled him away from the hobby for decades. Yet even after his license lapsed, he carried the radios, logbooks, and QSL cards with him through every move, convinced he would someday return. That return finally came in 2022. After earning his Extra Class license, Kevin discovered Parks on the Air and immediately connected with the simplicity and accessibility of portable operating. Living on a small island community in Maine without room for towers, POTA offered exactly what he was looking for: grab a radio, head to a park, and get on the air. What began as casual activations soon expanded into contesting, DXpedition-style operations in the Caribbean, interviews with some of amateur radio’s top operators on Q5, and eventually a seat on the POTA board itself. After spending weeks interviewing fellow board members, Kevin realized interviewing himself would be awkward at best — so he invited Jim Davis N8JRD from the Everyday Ham podcast to turn the tables. The result is a more personal and reflective conversation about leadership, growth, and the philosophy behind one of amateur radio’s fastest-growing programs. One of the strongest themes throughout the discussion is Kevin’s belief that the board’s best work should largely go unnoticed by the average activator or hunter. Parks on the Air succeeds, he argues, because it feels simple, welcoming, and dependable. The board’s responsibility is not to radically change that experience, but to quietly strengthen the infrastructure underneath it: modernizing systems, improving volunteer support, scaling databases and log processing, tightening governance, and preparing the organization for millions more QSOs and tens of thousands of additional parks worldwide. Kevin also discusses the remarkable volunteer culture behind POTA and the challenge of sustaining a fully volunteer-run organization experiencing explosive international growth. From upgraded mapping and improved awards systems to what many are informally calling “POTA 3.0,” much of the work happening behind the scenes is intentionally invisible — the kind of operational stability users only notice when it’s missing. And woven through all of it is a familiar truth for many radio operators: ham radio never entirely leaves you. Even after a 40-year absence, Kevin says he always kept his Kenwood TS-830 nearby, waiting for the right moment to get back on the air. Join the conversation and subscribe to Q5 Worldwide Ham Radio. Special thanks to DX Engineering for continuing to support amateur radio operators around the world. Whether it’s Parks on the Air activators setting up in the field, contesters chasing multipliers through the night, or DXers reaching across oceans, DX Engineering helps keep the equipment, knowledge, and enthusiasm flowing throughout the hobby.