To celebrate our upcoming 50^th Anniversary, SARA will be adopting a new log to advertise our readiness for the next semicentennial. While our current logo has served us well for many years, the Executive Committee has decided it’s time for a refresh. Over the years, SARA has had a number of logos including our current wordmark, a transistor-based logo, and even “Sara” a/k/a “Grandma Gerty”. With this logo update, our goal is a logo that represents SARA’s into the 2030s – whether it appears on a computer screen, an embroidered shirt, a club patch, or even a piece of paper.

Club members are encouraged to submit one design for the contest. Creativity is encouraged, but simplicity, versatility, and recognizably are essential. Please carefully read all of the rules and guidelines below before you begin your project. Submissions are due by November 29^th, 2026.

SARA Official Logo Design Contest — Rules and Guidelines

1. Purpose

The Silvercreek Amateur Radio Association (SARA) is inviting members to help design a new official club logo as part of our celebration of 50 years!

Our goal is to select a distinctive, recognizable, and modern logo that reflects our identity as an amateur radio organization and our commitment to amateur radio, technology, community, and fellowship.

The winning design will become the club’s official logo and will be used on websites, publications, correspondence, apparel, merchandise, signage, and other club materials.

2. Eligibility

The contest is open to all current SARA members.
Members of all ages and artistic skill levels are encouraged to participate.
No professional graphic design experience is necessary.
Each member may submit one distinct design.
Participation is voluntary.

3. Design Requirements

All submissions must meet the following requirements.

A. Scalability

The design must be recognizable and visually appealing in a wide range of sizes, from small website icons and letterhead logos to large banners and signs.

The logo must remain recognizable when reduced to approximately 1 inch (25 mm) in width.
Designs should avoid excessive detail, tiny lettering, and complicated illustrations.
Simple, bold shapes and clean lines are strongly encouraged.
The logo should fit into a square (1:1 ratio) or a rectangle of no more than a 4:3 ratio. Note that the logo need not have a square or rectangular border, just be able to “virtually” fit in those aspect ratios.
No “taller than wide” designs

B. Black-and-White Compatibility

The logo must work effectively in full color, solid black, and solid white.

It must remain recognizable when reproduced in a single color. It does not have to look identical but “mostly the same”.
It must reproduce clearly on in monochrome media – single-color silkscreening, monochrome printing, etc.

C. Embroidery and Physical Reproduction

The logo must be suitable for embroidery on shirts, hats, jackets, and patches, as well as screen printing and vinyl decals.

Avoid extremely thin lines, fine textures, tiny isolated elements, and intricate patterns.
Use solid shapes and clearly defined boundaries.
Avoid photographic elements, gradients, drop shadows, and three-dimensional effects.
The design should reproduce effectively on a patch approximately 3 inches (76 mm) wide.
Embroidery suitability will be an important evaluation criterion.

D. Colors

The logo must adapt well to a grayscale rendering of a color image without losing more than a trivial amount of “look”
The logo must also be effective in a single-color version (see B above)
Colors should contrast sufficiently for clear reproduction.

E. Content and Identity

The design should reflect amateur radio, radio communications, technology, community, or the club’s identity.
Traditional amateur radio imagery, such as antennas, towers, radio waves, or electronic symbols, may be incorporated but is not required.
Modern, abstract, and unconventional designs are welcome.
While discouraged, designs may include the club name, initials, or call sign, but must remain effective without excessively small lettering. Additionally the majority of the logo should not be letters or numbers.
The design should be appropriate for a professional organization and avoid imagery that could quickly become outdated.
The logo should not incorporate logos of other organizations including, but not limited to, the ARRL or any of its programs (e.g., Ohio Section, ARES, etc.).
The logo should not incorporate dates, numbers, frequencies, etc.

F. Originality

Submissions must be original designs or incorporate only elements the entrant has the legal right to use and license to the club.
Copyrighted clip art, commercial logos, trademarks, and third-party artwork may not be used.
Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) is allowed but entrants remain responsible for the originality and legal usability of their submissions.
The club may reject designs that substantially resemble existing organizational or commercial logos.

4. Submission Requirements

Each submission must include:

The entrant’s name and amateur radio call sign.
The proposed logo design.
A brief description of the design and its intended symbolism (100 words or fewer).
A digital image of the logo as a JPG, PNG, or HEIC file.
Any hand-drawn art should be submitted as a digital photograph of the paper

Entrants are encouraged but not required to submit both a color version and a black-and-white version.

5. Evaluation Criteria

Eligible designs will be evaluated using the following weighted criteria:

Criterion	Weight
Simplicity, clarity, and recognizability	25%
Scalability and small-size readability	20%
Suitability for embroidery and printing	20%
Representation of club identity and amateur radio	20%
Creativity, originality, and visual appeal	15%
Total	100%

Technical reproducibility is essential. A visually impressive design may be disqualified if it cannot reasonably be embroidered, printed in one color, or scaled to smaller sizes.

6. Selection Process

Phase 1 — Submission Review

The Executive Committee shall review all submissions for compliance with the contest rules.

Phase 2 — Finalist Selection

The committee will select up to five finalist designs based on the published evaluation criteria.

Phase 3 — Membership Vote

Eligible club members will vote on the finalist designs.

Each member receives one vote.
Voting will be conducted electronically
The finalist receiving the most votes will be the preferred winning design.

Phase 4 — Final Approval

The Executive Committee will confirm that the preferred design meets the technical and legal requirements before adoption.

Following the vote, the image will be turned over to a professional graphic artist who will finalize the design and provide various needed formats for online, print, and physical media.

7. Ownership and Usage Rights

The selected entry agrees that, by entering, SARA is granted exclusive, royalty-free license to display their submitted designs for contest administration, judging, membership voting, and announcement of contest results. Such grant is terminated upon conclusion of the contest unless the design is selected as the winner.
As a condition of final selection, the winning entrant must agree in writing to transfer copyright ownership of the final logo to SARA, to the extent legally transferable.
The winning entrant must also agree that SARA may reproduce, resize, recolor, simplify, adapt, and otherwise modify the logo for official club use.
Non-winning designs remain the property of their respective creators, and the club will not use them for purposes outside contest administration without permission.
Any required ownership agreement will be completed before the logo is officially adopted.

8. Final Design Refinements

Upon selection of the design, it will be given to a professional graphics artist to refine and tune the concept into a final logo. The club or its agents may make reasonable refinements to the selected design to ensure it can be reproduced in different media. These may include adjusting line thickness, simplifying details, correcting proportions, refining colors, or producing alternate one-color and embroidery-ready versions.

Such refinements will preserve the essential character of the winning design.

9. Contest Schedule

The following is the anticipated contest schedule. It may change at the discretion of the Executive Committee.

Milestone	Date
Contest opens	October 16, 2026
Submission deadline	November 29, 2026
Finalists announced	December 10, 2026
Membership voting	December 14 – January 2, 2026
Winner announced	January 21, 2026 (if pro graphics work is completed)

10. Recognition and Award

The winning designer will receive:

Recognition as the creator of the club’s official logo.
Recognition in club publications, on the website, and at a membership meeting.
One item of SARA apparel with the new logo at the creator’s choice not to exceed $150.

11. General Conditions

By submitting an entry, participants agree to abide by these rules.
The Executive Committee will resolve any disputes concerning eligibility, rule compliance, or the contest process. Any decision by the Executive Committee is final.
Any material changes to the contest rules will be communicated to the membership.

Make your submission at https://uploader.w8wky.org/logo-contest.

SARA Logo Design Contest