Rob G4RQJ now SK

[GM4LLD]

It is with great sadness that I have to announce the death of one of SOTA’s earliest participants and huge supporter of the program, Rob Hannan G4RQJ.

Rob and his XYL Audrey were super keen activators from the start of SOTA. They would be out together in all WX, very little kept them off the summits. Rob operated and Audrey logged, held poles, turned antennas etc. Active on HF SSB/CW and 2m FM/SSB it was always a good activation if you got an S2S with Rob (and Audrey).

On the SOTA stand at Blackpool you could guarantee that Rob and Audrey would be amongst the first to offer support to man the stand and Audrey would provide boxes and boxes of her gorgeous home made sausage rolls, cakes and tasty snacks. They were always there at the start and were amongst the last to leave.

Rob particularly enjoyed SOTA as it let him combine his love of the countryside and mountains and also enjoy his radio hobby.

After a while Rob’s sight developed issues. Just cataracts which are routinely fixed nowadays but sadly there were problems and eventually Rob needed a pair of cornea transplants. I can remember ribbing him because he was wearing sunglasses inside at one rally as the stitches holding his new corneas in place slowly healed. Unfortunately, Rob never regained enough sight to drive and this limited his outdoor activities. Not content with sight problems it was around this time that Rob developed Alzheimer’s disease and he has been declining for some years now till finally Audrey could no longer cope and Rob went into a care home.

Last Spring many visitors to the SOTA stand were delighted to meet Audrey who had come along after many years absence to catch up with old friends. Tom M1EYP gave her a SOTA cap for Rob to wear and Audrey told me he regularly sported it in his declining months.

I don’t think it is possible to meet a nicer couple than Rob and Audrey and I feel my own life was better for having known Rob over the last near 20 years. Some people such as Tom M1EYP and John G3WGV will have knon Rob for 23 years now.

Rob passed away Thursday 25th September and was in his mid 80s.

Please join me in sending your condolences and sympathy to Audrey and family.

Audrey told the funeral is arranged for 1100 am 10th October at Trevelyan Chapel, Barrow-in-Furness and all SOTA friends who knew Rob are welcome.

I don’t know if there will be a collection and will post details as soon as I find out.

RIP Rob.

[G6WRW]

Really sorry to read the very sad news. Sympathies to Audrey and their family.

Carolyn

[G7ADF]

Condolences and my thought are with Audrey.

Rob was my first ever sota chase on 26-05-2003 (Black Coombe) and took the time to explain the programme to which I took an interest.

Quite a few other memories over the years, but 2 that stand out happened on the same Welsh Barbecue Weekend. One was causing a small fire in the car as I had to turn the power up on the 2m mobile while Rob and Audrey were on a summit. In the evening, the site was plagued by midges and Rob sat on a chair with two huge citronella candles on either side looking like the Grand High Priest of Sota.

Always a stalwart on 2m SSB as well as many other bands and modes and once tried to persuade me to learn CW.

Whilst I probably won’t be able to attend the service, I will take a few moments around 11am on that date to reflect on having known Rob and counted him as a friend as he was to many.

Ian

[M1BUU]

Sorry to learn of this sad news, my thoughts and and best wishes to Audrey.

I met Rob a few times at the Blackpool rally stand where we discussed home brew radio. I did work Rob quite a few times during my early days in SOTA.

Rob is sadly missed.

Colin

[GM4WHA]

Very sorry to hear the sad news. I worked Rob alot when he was active on both 2m and 5mhz.

Condolences to Audrey and her family.

Geoff GM4WHA

[G4OIG]

This is sad news indeed. My sincere condolences to Audrey and the family.

Rob was always very knowledgeable and his enthusiasm was infectious. I well recall him extolling the virtues of SOTA on the stand at Blackpool. Listening to him was a real pleasure even though I was already fully conversant. A real gentleman, both on air and in person who will be sadly missed.

Gerald

[G0EVV]

So sorry to hear the sad news, so many times Rob was in my log as I plodded over the Pennines on Wainwrights and Sotas activations.

My thoughts are with you Audrey.

David G0EVV

[EI3LH]

Very sad to hear the news. What a wonderful story though, thank you for sharing it Andy.

Also Alzhiemer’s is something close to my heart too, absolutely devastating disease. God speed to Rob and my sincere condolences to Audrey and family and friends.

[GW4VPX]

So sad to hear this news. So many contacts with Rob in my log and many meet ups with him and Audrey at various radio rallies. My forever memory of Rob is hearing his voice on 2m giving me my fourth contact on Skiddaw and my Mountain Goat.

Condolences to Audrey and the family. RIP Rob.

Allan GW4VPX

[G4AZS]

Sad to hear this, Rob was an encouraging influence when I began taking interest in SOTA. We had several contacts over the years, and met a couple of times at Norbreck - where I enjoyed some of the legendary cake too. I mostly associate Rob with their “View from the North” newsletter, which I always found interesting.

My condolences to Audrey, RIP Rob, and thank you.

Adrian

G4AZS

[M0HGY]

I am very sorry to hear that Rob @G4RQJ has now sadly passed away. Rob G4RQJ was a very nice man who I knew from the very early days of SOTA. I always use to enjoy seeing Rob G4RQJ and his XYL Audrey at the Norbreck Rally’s where Audrey always bought in some of her homemade treats. I always use to enjoy my QSOs with Rob G4RQJ on 2m either when I was activating a SOTA summit or when Rob G4RQJ was activating a SOTA summits. Thursday 25th September just gone was actually my 33rd Birthday and therefore it is very sad to hear that Rob G4RQJ passed away on my Birthday.

Jimmy M0HGY

[MW0WML]

Such very sad news. I spoke with Rob many times, often summit to summit, well before those contacts were officially recorded separately.

Happy memories of chats and cake at Blackpool.. that’s what I will remember.

It was lovely to see Audrey this year.

My condolences to her and the family.

Gerald MW0WML

[M3ZCB]

Very sorry to hear the sad news. Rob worked Martyn summit to summit on Martyn’s first activation as as a newly licensed amateur in 2003, and was always a friendly helpful voice when we were in the area. We enjoyed meeting him and Audrey at Blackpool over the years, and it was especially good to see Audrey earlier this year.

Many condolences to Audrey and family.

Caroline M3ZCB.

[M6BWA]

Very sorry to hear the news about Rob but I knew that he had been admitted to a care home some time ago as Audrey, who had looked after him devotedly at home for many years, could no longer cope. He is now at rest but he will not be forgotten by all the older (ie who have been taking part in SOTA for many years) members who will have vivid memories of contacts with ‘Rob and Audrey’ although the only voice was Rob’s while Audrey was recording the QSOs. I particularly enjoyed the accounts of their annual visits to the Isle of Man (which inspired us to visit some years later) and I realised his health must be failing when these visits suddenly stopped. My only meeting with them both was as we descended the Wrekin and they were coming up and my white poles on the outside of the rucksack were spotted by Rob. A vigorous SOTA conversation was enjoyed while the usual crowds of other vistors surged past us in both directions. Sadly this was our only contact in ‘real life’ but I treasure many s2s over those distant years. I am sorry that I missed the visit of Audrey to the SOTA stand at Norbreck this year but was very pleased that Rod had met up with her. My thoughts are with Audrey now - and will be at the time of the funeral. RIP Rob.

Viki M6BWA

[M1EYP]

Such a lovely man, who I am grateful became a dear friend. Rob was a fixture in SOTA when I discovered the scheme back in September 2002. He had been activating since May of that year, just 5 weeks into the life of SOTA.

His final activation in 2018 before his health started to decline, was his 916th. He would have been 76 or 77 then, quite surprising as he always presented as much younger.

Living in Walney Island, near Barrow-in-Furness, Rob was out activating seemingly every weekend, always accompanied by his wife Audrey. Rob and Audrey had been together since they were teenagers - real-life “childhood sweethearts”. Audrey was not licensed but loved the SOTA programme, both the wonderful fellwalking and the friendly community aspects.

As I became Publicity Officer on SOTA MT and with it, the responsibility for the SOTA stand at the annual Norbreck Rally in Blackpool, Rob and Audrey became my go-to people - first names on the teamsheet. They were usually already at the exhibition hall when I arrived, in their SOTA sweatshirts, and ready to set everything up.

Rob and Audrey provided most of the display items - laminated activation photos, guess the summit quizzes - and of course Audrey’s legendary homemade cakes and sausage rolls. Prior to having proper stands to hoist the banner, Rob would apply his engineering skills to get the banner up, secure and looking good - using a couple of fibreglass poles and lots of gaffer tape!

They would be first to arrive, last to leave, and spend more time than anyone else manning the stand in-between. Which was ideal, because you couldn’t wish for friendlier or more engaging people to be the faces of SOTA.

Rob’s friendly and cheerful disposition came over clearly on the airwaves too. Whether answering your call as a chaser, or in summit-to-summit QSO, he always sounded like he was having the time of his life, and was absolutely delighted to hear from you.

Sincere condolences to Audrey, and R.I.P. Rob - a true SOTA legend.

Rob Hannan G4RQJ 1940-2025

[GM4LLD]

I have a link via the undertakers for Rob’s funeral and the collection which is for Alzheimers Society.

Fms

Visit that page and there is a donate button so you can donate online.

[VA6MPM]

We all walk on stepping stones placed by others.

[M1EYP]

I’ve just been on the phone with Audrey and enjoyed a long chat reminiscing about times with her and Rob @G4RQJ in SOTA.

Audrey could not express enough how much pleasure SOTA has given her and Rob over the last 20 or so years. She asked me to convey her love and best wishes to all hers and Rob’s friends in SOTA over the last couple of decades. She also added that both she and her son Jim have read every message in this thread, and it’s given them great comfort.

The good news is that Audrey now intends to attend Norbreck Rally every year for the time being.

[MW0IDX]

I am very sorry to hear the passing of Rob. A lovely humble guy who I had the privilege of knowing since the beginning of SOTA.

Rob was a regular on the bands in the early days, ably assisted by Audrey on antenna duty and joined us on the early GW SOTA weekends where we first experienced the wonders of Audrey’s cakes.

My sincere condolences to Audrey and family.

RIP Rob
Roger

[M0NOM]

Myself and a large number of members of the Furness Amateur Radio club were present at Rob’s funeral today in Barrow. The service was a testament to his family, and there was many a mention of Rob’s enthusiasm for radio and SOTA.

Being a ‘graduate’ of FARS when I started taking an interest in SOTA Rob was very patient explaining the programme and how it operated, and was often on the other end of a QSO.

Audrey said she had kept up with the messages of condolences on the SOTA reflector, so thank you to everyone who has posted.

A sad day but also a celebration of a life well lived by a loving man.

Mark M0NOM