Radio Club

Status
Not open for further replies.

LowBat

Member
Premium Subscriber
Joined
Jun 13, 2010
Messages
142
Location
San Jose, CA
You got me scratching my head thinking about it. I remember my brother taking me to Beresford Park in San Mateo in the late 70's for a meeting of the Bay Area Scanners Club. Vendors such as Glenn Cohen of Scanners Unlimited and Gary Mondfrans of Monitor Control were there. I also remember seeing an early version of a synthesized frequency programmable handhend scanner on the table. Back then just about everything was still crystal. As to whatever became of the club I don't know. I haven't heard of any scanner clubs since.
 

GShotsTV

Member
Joined
Jan 30, 2011
Messages
2
Bay Area Scanners Club

Thank you for remembering the Bay Area Scanners Club, yes indeed I was President for awhile, even wrote the newsletter in the late 1970's. I think Ed Tobiasz followed in one or both of those capacities. I was involved even before I open Monitor Control in the Spring of 1980 Glenn moved Scanners Unlimited right next door and we even exchanged crystals needed for our customers in the back alley off Greenwood and Laurel in San Bruno. I moved Monitor Control to El Camino Real near the Tanforan Shopping Center to be closer to my home in August of 1980, then operated it only part-time for the next 10 years after I was hired as a San Francisco PD Dispatcher. Long story short in 1981 a SF Sheriffis Deputy encouraged me to do so, even brought me the application papers, then turned them in for me. I was hired within weeks and only retired in June of 2012 after 31 years. By that time we were dispatch all branches of San Francisco Emergency service, Police, Fire, Ambulance and eventually the Sheriff's Department itself which never had it's own dispatch service until them. Isn't it ironic, maybe that Deputy knew something well before it's time.

Gary J. Mondfrans, was D#73 at SFPD

P.S. I love RadioReferrance and the ScannerRadio app. on my EVO. Wish the Lake County (Cal.) SO/Law Enforcement were present along with Lake County (Cal.) Fire.
 

GShotsTV

Member
Joined
Jan 30, 2011
Messages
2
Correction on above, the first store was in San Carlos, then relocated to San Bruno. I continued to operate Monitor Control until 1990 while working the 1900-0300 watch at the Hall of Justice.
 

LowBat

Member
Premium Subscriber
Joined
Jun 13, 2010
Messages
142
Location
San Jose, CA
Hello Gary. I remember your store when it was on El Camino next to 380. I think you looked up a frequency for me for $1 if I remember correctly. I think that was 1981. I also recall my brother saying you were once the mayor of San Bruno. It's been so long I may have my facts wrong.

I do remember my brother taking me to Glenn's house before he had a store front. There were scanners setup on his living room table for sale. That was before I was even old enough to drive. Back in those days my brother Ron worked for Mercy Peninsula Ambulance. It was before Medevac got the county contract in 1980. I think the other ambulance providers for the county were Silva's and one other I can't remember the name of (Radcliff?). It was sort of like that movie "Mother, Jug's and Speed" when it came to competition.

My brother went on to work for San Francisco Ambulance before becoming a paramedic for DPH. He retired somewhere in the late 80's from a back injury. I spent a little time as a city cop in San Diego also in the late 80's.

Getting back to scanners, I miss the days when things were simpler. Never cared much for trunking and still having a tough time figuring out digital. Being a dispatcher you probably kept current with all the technological changes. Anyway, I'm getting way off the topic of scanner clubs. Hope you're enjoying retirement.
 

rjyoung

Member
Joined
Aug 5, 2007
Messages
56
Location
California
I was at those meetings with a high school friend, and bought a Bearcat 101 from Glenn. My dad took me to his house. I also remember both of your stores, Gary.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top