Who are the Scanner Scum?
John "The Kahuna" McColman attended the first Winter SWL Fest in February 1988 in the now infamous "Pink and Purple Pancho Villa Room" of the Fiesta Motor Inn in Willow Grove, PA. John was joined by Bill Cole in representing the scanner contingent at this gathering. Although the Winter SWL Fest was founded as a shortwave event, John and Bill presented strong evidence that radio waves above 30 MHz represent interesting listening opportunities. Skip Arey and Jon Cohen were also in attendance at the first Fest but had not actively joined the movement at that point.
Mike Eilers, Dave Marshall, Lynn
Burke, Dr. DX, John McColman, Mark Meece, Ed Muro
Skip Arey, Bill Cole, Don Schimmel
The SWL Fest moved to Kulpsville and John and Bill were soon joined by Jon, Skip, Dave Marshall and Mark Meece to form the nucleus of the renegade group known as the Scanner Scum. This designation was placed upon our intrepid hobbyists by none other than Dr.Harold Cones DX (alias Dr. DX ). Dr. DX would encounter members of this group and say, "There are those Scanner Scum." The name stuck and the group took steps to live up to the name.
The group was joined by Don Schimmel (a well known utility DXer) and John Vodenik (well-known Voice of America employee) at the SWL Fest's Saturday night banquets to lend color to the festivities.
Informal gatherings continued at various venues including the Knoxville and Atlanta Monitoring Times Conventions and North East Scanning News "Dutch Inn" meetings.
For the 1994 Winter SWL Fest, the decision was made that the Scanner Scum needed an identity and, in a show of unusually good taste, it was decided to emulate a bowling team from Pennsauken, New Jersey and maroon shirts with teal lettering were purchased for each of the Scum. (Dave picked out the colors, don't blame the rest of us!) This touch of sartorial splendor was a sight to behold. (Ask the waitresses at Golden Corral in Virginia Beach...) 1994 also saw Tom Swisher and Mike Eilers join the fold.
Lee Reynolds, Tom Swisher, John McColman, Jon Cohen, Skip Arey, Mark Meece
Next came Lynn Burke, Ed Muro and Bob Crain. Additional Scum gatherings began to occur in far flung locations such as Sandbridge, VA. It was at one such gathering the elite "Strike Team" unit of the Scum known as The Burkey Boys first went into deep cover action. The actual activities and even membership of this elite unit remain shrouded in secrecy. It was also at one such gathering that Bill Cole began his French Fry collection (largely with the assistance of his fellow Scum)
For many years Lee Reynolds labored unceasingly to attain membership in the Scanner Scum. After serving for a year as the first president of The Scanner Scum Women's Auxiliary (don't ask), in 2003, at a Scum gathering in a remote location in rural West Virginia, The Kahuna bestowed full membership in the Scanner Scum on Lee.
It was a full four years until another individual demonstrated the skills and special talents worthy of Scumhood. At the 2007 Saturday evening banquet of the 20th Annual Kulpsville Winter SWL Fest, Pete Heberer was granted full membership into the Scanner Scum, having already been present to many Scanner Scum (and even elite Burley Boy) activities. Many are called but few are chosen.
Pete Heberer
While the title Scanner Scum indicates that members of the group have an affinity for monitoring signals above 30 MHz, as a group the Scum cover all bands, modes and frequencies in the radio spectrum. If it's out there we can hear it...end of discussion!
Ed Muro, Mike Eilers, Lynn Burke, Dave Marshall
Most members of the group are also active authors and teachers of the radio art. Hundreds of articles and nearly a dozen books on the radio hobby have appeared under the byline of members of the Scanner Scum.
No less than six members of the Scum have served on the board of the Association of North American Radio Clubs. Mark Meece served as president of this organization.
John Vodenick