The W5YI Web site is reporting that:

With sincere regrets we announce the passing of Fred Maia, W5YI,
Wednesday evening, March 28, 2012, following a brave battle with cancer.

--
Jeff, KE9V

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In Jeff Davis writes:

The W5YI Web site is reporting that:

With sincere regrets we announce the passing of Fred Maia, W5YI,
Wednesday evening, March 28, 2012, following a brave battle with cancer.

--
Jeff, KE9V

Fred was a unique, and sometimes controversial, character in amateur
radio.

My initial association with him was as a Volunteer Examiner (VE) under
his VE Coordination (VEC) program while at the University of Maryland
and its amateur radio club, W3EAX. Fred had approached many clubs,
including ours, shortly after the Goldwater bill was passed in 1982,
enabling regulations by the FCC to have volunteers give amateur radio
exams were published, and VEC's were accredited by the FCC. So the UM
club sponsored one of the first VE teams in the area. Even several
years afterwards, during the time I was a club member and VE, the
examination sessions were well-attended, with automobile license plates
from as far away as New Jersey. These sessions continued well into the
early 90's, with ARRL and Laurel VEC teams giving more local exams, and
the membership base, especially Extra-class amateurs, declining in the
UM club after I had graduated.

Fred was also an enthusiastic volunteer for my (now-defunct) Amateur
Radio Elmers Resource Directory.

The main criticism of Fred seemed to have been about his for-profit
business, offering to file FCC paperwork for a fee, which can be
submitted for free. Fee-based assistance with filing free applications
with the government was not unique with Fred, nor unique to amateur
radio, and was strictly legal. However, I can see how it rubbed some
amateurs the wrong way.

There were occasional irregularities with W5YI VEC-sponsored exam
sessions, but that was not unique to W5YI. Other VEC programs had their
occasional bad apples that had to be routed out. At no time during any
W5YI (or ARRL) VEC exam sessions that I helped administer over the years
did I personally witness anything illegal or unethical.

Rest in peace, Fred. Amateur radio is just a little bit diminished
without you here with us on this earth.

- --
73, Paul W. Schleck, K3FU

http://www.novia.net/~pschleck/
Finger for PGP Public Key

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On Fri, 30 Mar 2012 10:57:08 EDT, Paul W. Schleck
" wrote:

The main criticism of Fred seemed to have been about his for-profit
business, offering to file FCC paperwork for a fee, which can be
submitted for free. Fee-based assistance with filing free applications
with the government was not unique with Fred, nor unique to amateur
radio, and was strictly legal. However, I can see how it rubbed some
amateurs the wrong way.

ARRL also charges a fee to renew licenses of non-ARRL-members.

I am an ARRL/VEC accredited VE. If someone comes to one of my
sessions and asks us to renew his license (without taking any exams),
we have to charge him a fee. However, I tell him to save his money,
and that after the session I will help him to renew his license online
for free.

As I am the team leader for the ARRL/VEC exam team in my town, my name
and phone number is on all the publicity for the exams, and I have
become the go-to guy for anyone in my town who has a problem with
licenses. If I can't help them fix it, I usually can find out how.

Dick Grady, AC7EL
Team Leader and Liaison of the Pahrump, NV VE Team