N.Y. State Trooper's Funeral Draws Hundreds, Including New Governor
By Paul Nelson
Source Times Union, Albany, N.Y.
SCHENECTADY, NY—Gov. Kathy Hochul joined hundreds of other mourners, many of them fellow law enforcement officers, at the funeral Monday for Trooper James J. Monda, who died Aug. 22 in Great Sacandaga Lake.
The service began at 10 a.m. at the ornate St. John the Evangelist church on Union Street in Schenectady.
Monda, 45, a Princetown-based member of a marine patrol unit since 2017, went into the lake wearing dive gear for reasons that are under investigation, State Police Superintendent Kevin Bruen told reporters last week.
Monda was in the water at a launch on Bunker Hill Road in Northampton at about 4 p.m. and did not resurface. He was pulled from the water and taken to Nathan Littauer Hospital in Gloversville where he was pronounced dead.
Monda, a native of the Rotterdam area, is survived by his fiancée and parents.
The skirl of bagpipes filled the air as a procession of State Police motorcycles pulled into the church parking lot and around the back as a wall of state troopers, most in their familiar gray uniform and Stetson hat, lined up neatly along Union Street directly out front before slowly filing into the church followed by police officers from other departments.
State Police Superintendent Kevin Bruen, who spoke with the media before the funeral service, talked about the inherent dangers of police work.
"It's just a sad day for us as an organization, in addition to the obvious that it's a sad day for his family ... but it's a dangerous job, and every trooper and particularly their family know that when you leave on a shift to work, you may not come back," said Bruen.
Troop G Commander Major R. Christopher West, who stood alongside Bruen, recalled Monda as "very dependable and friendly" who helped out fellow troopers with personal jobs at their home when he was off-duty.
"He was a jokester too, well liked, and got along with everyone," added West. "I think the legacy will be that Trooper Monda, Jim, was a great guy, he was a hard worker, we selected him for a number of special details because of that work ethic that he had — we sent him to the State Fair, he was an ATV/UTV operator, patrol rifle member and part of the marine unit."
An ATV (all-terrain vehicle) is also known as "quad" or "four wheeler" and is meant for single-riders. A UTV (utility task vehicle) tends to be beefier and allows for "side-by-side" riding, according to information online.
West said Monda grew up in the area, and started off his law enforcement career working for less than a year at Troop B and then spent the rest of his time at Troop G, most in Zone 3 in Princetown.
"As the superintendent alluded to earlier, it's a dangerous profession, and sometimes when you leave home you never know what's going to happen at the end of the day, but to have so many people come from around the country literally to show support, as we have done for them and will continue to do, it means a lot to us," said West.
He reiterated that the loss has been tough on the State Police family but that Monday was a day to give a proper send off to one of their own.
Monda, who joined the State Police in 2002, spent most of his career in Troop G.
Schenectady Police Chief Eric Clifford, who attended Monda's funeral, said afterward that Monda was part of the joint "blue gray patrols" Schenectady does with the State Police aimed at curbing gun crimes.
"The feedback that I got from the guys was that he was well liked and well respected," said Clifford.
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