Friends arrange for 'Santa Dave' to take medallion with him
"Santa Dave" Young never asked for a gift.
But friends who will attend his funeral Friday have asked for, and received, the medallion the renowned Twin Cities treasure hunter fruitlessly sought for more than a quarter century.
Young's fellow "Cooler Crew" treasure hunting team members approached the Pioneer Press on Monday and asked for the Treasure Hunt medallion, which they intend to place in Young's hand or pocket before his casket is sealed.
"I want to know for a fact that it got in there," said Jana Armstead, of St. Paul, who was given the medallion to carry to Young's funeral in Worthington, Minn.
Armstead, who joked - sort of - that she likely will sleep and shower with the medallion, agreed not to let it out of her sight. A medallion typically stays in a hunter's possession for only a few hours.
Other members of the Cooler Crew - which Young co-founded in 1998 - saw it as a fitting gift.
"Every year, no matter who actually found the medallion, there's always sort of a lull or depression, because you're not the one who found it. Dave was always the first one to remind everyone he saw that there was always next year," said Trygve Olsen, of St. Paul.
"But there isn't going to be a next year for Dave."
Young died May 14 in the company of fellow treasure hunters at Major's bar and restaurant in Inver Grove Heights. He collapsed unexpectedly into the lap of his good friend Jake Ingebrigtson, winner of the first of two 2007 Treasure Hunts.
Known as "Santa Dave" for his fulsome laugh, good humor and bushy white beard, Young buoyed other hunters on frigid January nights. He was also a stand-up comic and ham radio operator, and he delivered pizzas in the Twin Cities for more than 25 years, driving what friends called "pretty old jalopies" filled to the windows with whatever Young saw fit.
He had been hunting for the medallion since the late 1970s - a pastime that fit well with his insatiable desire to socialize. "Dave was a well-known and well-liked treasure hunter. His smiling face was a regular at Treasure Hunt gatherings here at the paper. He'll be missed," Carolyn Robertson, Pioneer Press marketing manager, said in a written statement.
About 20 Cooler Crew members will attend Young's funeral.
"That's how this group has gotten this close, because of people like Dave," Armstead said. "It was just like losing Santa Claus."
Young's family even debated - at least for a moment - burying the fun-loving man in his Santa suit.
"We all thought of it, and smiled," said cousin Margie Salentiny, of Dundee, Minn. "I said, you know, that would be pretty cute. But you know, that might weird some kids out."
Visitation for Young will be at 11:30 p.m. Friday at Benson's Funeral Home, 507 Ryan Road, in Worthington. Services will be at 1:30 p.m.
Tad Vezner can be reached at tvezner@pioneerpress.com or 651-228-5461.
Copyright 2007 Pioneer Press.
