via the RSGB: Jonathan Machon, M7FQM: Foundation licence and beyond

Jonathan Machon, M7FQM has always held a keen interest in radio from scanning the bands to enjoying CB radio in the 1990s. However, due to severe vocal chord damage, which he incurred at birth, he felt afraid to make the move into amateur radio.

A few years ago, whilst he was listening to 2m, he came across a conversation between radio amateurs, one of whom had a disability. Every so often Jonathan thought about the conversation that he heard, until one morning he woke up and thought “I’m going to do it, I’m going to do something I have always wanted to do”. That week he went onto the RSGB website and booked the Foundation Licence exam.

Due to his interest in the hobby over the years, Jonathan had picked up a good level of knowledge, and consolidated this learning with self-study and watching some Essex Ham YouTube videos online.