On the timeline of call letters affixed to the 1460 AM frequency licensed to Santa Rosa, KWFN comes after KQTE and before KRRS.
KWFN showed up in August 1986. Station owner John Detz told The Press Democrat that listeners were confusing “KQTE” for “KQED”. There may have been a bit more confusion when the newly-christened station began referring to itself on the air as “W-FUN”, sounding like east-of-the-Mississippi River call letters.
With the new call letters, Detz ditched the “Music of Your Life” sound that had been heard on KQTE. In its place, an oldies format focused on hits from the ’50s and ’60s. The station promoted appearances by DJ’s in a 1957 Chevrolet and ran a classic car giveaway contest.
Whatever the call letters, Santa Rosa’s 1460 frequency had always been challenged by a less-than-spectacular signal. The 1,000-watt daytime station was easy to overlook, even as Sonoma County’s growth pulled more advertising dollars into the market.
In early 1988, KWFN changed hands. The station and its Santa Rosa sister KVRE-FM were part of the seven-station portfolio sold by John Detz’s Visionary Radio Euphonics Inc. to Keffco, Inc. The buyer, which paid $5.4 million, was headed by broadcast consultant James Kefford.
Kefford told The Press Democrat he didn’t anticipate making any changes. “There is no reason to fix something that isn’t broken,” he told the newspaper.
And then, just a few months later, Kefford pulled the plug on KWFN.
On September 1, 1988 the station became KRRS, billing itself as “The Rose” and eliminating the oldies music in favor of a format built around easy-listening music and local news.
