I thought it would be nice to have a spot for us to share our memories of Dave, just like we did with Kirk, and we can get them passed along to his family.
Eags
OK...Terry tells me I should share this with y'all.
I was e-mailing with a Cooler Crew member who had the pleasure of meeting Santa Dave's friend, Jerry Maren, who played the spokesperson for the Lollipop Guild (center, in photo http://static.flickr.com/77/167367240_1f0fc005e7_o.jpg)
I got to thinking that someone should notify Mr. Maren of Dave's passing.
So, I did a search and found an e-mail address, and drafted the following e-mail:
"Dear Jerry,
If memory serves me correctly, you have a friend in
St. Paul, Minnesota - Dave Young. I am also a friend
of Dave's. My name is Diane ____ and I'm part of a
group he belonged to called The Cooler Crew.
We've had some bad news about Dave. He passed away on
Monday evening, May 14, 2007, in the company of good
friends, suddenly and without suffering.
I recall Dave speaking of you so many times. I just
wanted to be sure you would get word of his passing.
Please let me know if there is other information you
would find helpful or comforting.
With sincere sympathy in the loss of your friend,
-Diane ____ (Dave's friend, aka "Eags")
So, I posted the following to Terry and a few others, to let them know:
"I just did something rather unique. In fact, a friend got on IM just at that moment and asked me "what are you up to?"
I said, well you will never guess, but go ahead and try!
She couldn't guess.
But here is what I did!
I e-mailed Dave's friend, Jerry Marin, who played one of the munchkins in The Wizard of Oz. Thanks to some of the other Coolerheads for remembering enough info that we came up with the right name!
I found contact info, and sent an e-mail to something@somethingmunchkinland - that was part of the e-mail address! Now, only with Santa Dave as a friend would a person be likely to find themself with such interesting and unique connections!"
A few minutes later, I posted again, to Terry, et al:
"Now that I've had a moment to think about all that -
And please understand that I am having a Mary Tyler Moore moment here (as in the "Chuckles the Clown" episode), as I realized, in wonder and amazement......
I just e-mailed a munchkin to tell him that Santa died!?!
Does anyone else see the irony in that?" :eyeroll:
My favorite Santa Dave memory was at Conway, on a night late into the hunt. It was -20 around 11pm and only a handful of diehards in the park. and there was Santa Dave in his hat and a windbreaker poking at the ground with his ice chopper. someone called him with the clue something about plains, and then the cars started roling in, one after another and people junping out all excited to dig and 15 mns later almost all the cars left it was so cold and then we were alone in the park. Dave looks at me and lets out one of his big laughs that echos in the cold air and we both just start laughing at each other for being so crazy to keep looking in the middle of such a cold night.
Not only did he have a Santa beard, but he had that magic twinkle in his eyes, and joyful caring spirit, let along as much stuff in his car as Santa has in his sleigh.
Not yet. Worthington, MN paper will run the obit I'm thinking tomorrow.
I expect, if it's like where my inlaws are, visitation maybe on Friday night and service and burial on Saturday. They will likely want to give all his friends in the cities a chance to attend if they would like.
I would totally go except that I'm going to be in Duluth all weekend. :frown: I think my favorite Santa Dave memory was during the second hunt this past year, it was right after the 6th clue (I think) came out, a bunch of us drove to Obbs from the PP but they were closed when we got there. Me and Dave decided to meet the Camo Crue guys at Perkins. They all spent the whole time trying to convince me that it was at Mounds instead of Central. This went on for like an hour before they all finally gave up on me. The look on their faces when the next clue came out, the one that said "don't turn up your noses at the city of roses", was priceless.
I drive thru worthinton 5nights a week it 3and a half if you drive stright thru and just a heads up watch the construction zones and cops have been heavy the last 2 weeks!!!!!!!!!
Man, I'd have to say that my favorite Santa Dave memory was the predig of 04 I think it was... I can't recall.. anyways, I was still some what new to the crew, didn't know everyone quite yet, but Santa Dave walked up to me and introduced himself and asked who I was, and when I told him he gave me a really big hug :smile: It made me feel really welcomed, that's for sure!! There were other times when there were events and my car had pooped out on me and he had offered to give me a ride or come and pick me up, and he was also one of the first people to leave me a message after I lost my son Charlie. He really touched a lot of hearts. He was a very good man, but he's in a much better place. One good thing, my Charlie will get to hang around with not only Marilyn Monroe, but also Santa :wink:
Dave .... one of the kindest men. Never had a bad thing to say about anyone. He would instant message me everytime he saw me online just to say hello and ask me how I was. I could always here his caring voice shining through in his messages while we typed to eachother. Santa Dave was one of the staples in the CoolerCrew! He would grace us with his gentle presence at every event. Always positive. He was Santa at Linders Greenhouse where even my kids got to sit on his lap and take hay rides with him. I was blessed to know him...a true treasure ~ Santas in Heaven ~
Posted by: jana
5/16/2007 2:52 PM
3323.1 Report as Violation
No rating
Dave Young
The Hitman of Comedy
By Scott Hansen
May 17,2007
Dave Young was known within the Twin Cities comedy community as “The Hitman of Twin Cities Comedy”. Jeff Gerbino and the small group of comedians that conceived the local comedy industry gave the name to him. The main reason for the nom du comedy was his act. Dave never had more than a few minutes of jokes. His act was made up of a few self-deprecating lines, an unsuccessful attempt to comment on a current event and then he would close with a joke that seldom worked.
Dave was not very funny. Dave did not have sharp material. Dave was nervous on stage and had a nervous tick that had him stuttering his punch lines.
Dave Young was one of my favorite comedians of all time.
Dave showed up at Mickey Finns in 1978. It was at just about the same time that I had begun my comedy career. I wasnÂ’t very funny either. Honestly, I didnÂ’t know what to think of this chubby little man with the scraggly beard that seemed so out of place. But it wasnÂ’t long before I discovered his charm. In fact it was a few short weeks later.
It was a tough night at Mickey Finns. The entire audience could fill one large table at a bingo hall. An N-43 would have excited the crowd more than my act. I was plugging away hard, but as a novice I had little to fall back upon comedically. Then, it happened. I heard it. It was a loud, gregarious, laugh that filled the small comedy club. The laugh was a little off the beat of my crudely timed act, but, it was a laugh. It was also the only laugh that I could elicit. The laugh was like a laugh track from I Love Lucy. It was there on every puchline. The laugh was perfect. The laugh was real. This laugh was so infectious, that soon the laughter became the focus of the show. I looked to see where it was coming from and there was this curmudgeon of a man, Dave Young.
I had watched Dave on stage earlier and loved his act. He dressed shabbily and had a balding head with long, white, hair that was sloppily and unevenly draped over his ears. Dave was clad in an incorrectly buttoned plaid shirt, and well worn, trousers that were conservatively estimated to be four sizes too small, that were fastened with what looked like a rope. He had tape on his glasses and a pen protector well ahead of their stylish genesis. Dave ascended the stage like a nerd gnome. His jokes were ill timed, poorly delivered and written with no structure. I thought to myself that this man was a tremendous character actor. I did not know that he was not acting. He was not a character comedian. He was a comedian that was an actual character.
On that difficult night in the impetus of my career, God sent Dave Young. I looked at this jovial man and suddenly my failure seemed of little importance. I paused and looked directly at Dave and began to “adlib”.
“Ladies and gentlemen…Dave Young…the professional audience member!”
Dave laughed loudly again and the audience applauded.
“Dave laughs at everything. No matter how bad the joke, Dave laughs at me.”
Dave laughed again and the audience laughed lightly.
“Dave, Two plus two equal four.”
Dave let loose. Dare I try again?
“Dave, four plus four equals eight.”
Dave laughed with epic grandeur and the audience laughter grew. I continued the banter.
“Dave, eight plus eight is sixteen.”
Dave did not laugh.
I said, “What’s wrong, Dave? Are you a critic now? “
The audience laughed. Then Dave said, “ No, I heard that one before!”
The audience laughed. Dave laughed. I laughed. It was the first time I ever laughed at myself on stage.
Dave never sought a real comedy career. Our careers went their separate ways. That was a good decision. But, Dave never ended his love of comedy and laughter. Until his final weeks, Dave was everywhere there was comedy. He would just show up. In my clubs, Dave was welcome at any show and I loved seeing Dave. Dave was there every time a star played my club or came in concert. Jay Leno, Jerry Seinfeld, Roseanne, Louie Anderson, Jeff Cesario all knew Dave. After the concert he would always go out to eat after the show with all the comedians.
Dave had become a success barometer for some of my favorite comedians. When Louie Anderson came to town a few years ago he asked, “Where’s Dave Young? It’s not a successful show unless Dave Young sneaks in!”
Dave showed up on Friday at 10:30 PM, just in time for the after show meal. Louie was relieved that the show had reached proper Dave Young status.
Last Saturday night I did a show at RJ’s Too in Princeton. Dave lived in Princeton. I didn’t call Dave to tell him. I assumed he would be at the show. I was certain that he would show up just a few minutes before show time… as usual. Then the club owner would tell me that a strange little man was at the box office. Dave would join the comedians and I would ask him how he was. “Fabulous!” was always the answer. I would ask Dave if he wanted to do a guest set. I knew that he did, because wrapped in his arms was a paper grocery bag, which held his props.
Dave would stammer his way through his five minutes and I would laugh at every one of his jokes. Lately, the rest of the audience did, too.
Regretfully, I didn’t call Dave and he didn’t show up at my show. As we packed our gear I remember telling comedian Duane Bjerke. “ I wonder what happened to Dave Young? It’s not like him to miss me when I’m in his hometown. Have I lost my popularity?”
I looked forward to DavesÂ’ appearances because Dave was a great balance for me in a difficult industry. This unlikely comedy gnome had a wonderful charm that has led me through some difficult times in comedy:times when I take this business too seriously. Dave Young was the first of a handful of people in comedy that have shown me that comedy is not about clothes, fancy cars, money ,Hollywood and fameÂ…comedy, is about the laughs.
I guess I took Dave for granted. I assumed he would always just walk in to my show. I wish he had last Saturday. I would have loved to have laughed with him one more time. I will miss “The Hitman Of Twin Cities Comedy”. So will scores of great comedians locally and nationwide that got to hear his beautiful laughter.
I am going to stop twomrrow on my way thru worthington and see if Santa Daves obit is in the papper still if it is I am going to grab a few and if nothing eles I think they will still have some of todays let by the time I go thru!! tonight!!
iceman - if you will be through there tomorrow, I would like a copy of the paper. Today's edition just said arrangements were pending or something to that effect.
I was thinking that next hunt, let's all make a concerted effort at the paper to hold the 2nd spot in line open for Dave in memoriam, like the air force does when they fly in formation but with one jet out of place, to honor a fallen comrade.
by the way terry you are more then welcome to one! and anyone else I dont know how many I can aford! but I will look at them and see what it says! I would like to get one to the up also! I just may haveto wate tell I get payed from work to send it!
I havn't brought myself to read this thread as of yet but I wanted everyone to see these. I ended up with Santa Daves camera. Mostly because I didn't trust nor know what the coroners would do with his things. Whitney won't touch his camera. Last night in a quiet moment I brought myself to sit at the computer and load his photos. I was bumbed at first to see he hadn't taken any on Monday night. But I was pleasantly amazed that he never took any of the photos off his camera over the last couple of years! I placed the photos on a disc and now Ive loaded only the photos of the Cooler Crew onto photobucket for all of us to see through his eyes.... There were more photos of his family and some really odd shots of other things that arn't on photobucket and I will find a way to give the camera and chip to his family so they can enjoy.
I have photos on my camera that I have not yet loaded and I have many photos from over the past years but I just havn't brought myself to sit longer and go through them without without blurry eyes...
heres the link to what our friend enjoyed:
... enjoy - they are in the order of when Dave took them (cept backwards-so that first photo was the last he took and the last on the 2nd page was the first he took)--- notice how the last photo he took of a cooler friend was Jake, the night he found the medallion and we all walked in the dark down to Hidden Falls. A night I was very glad I made my self go and was apart of his long treck through the snow and back up that hill... I was impressed that Dave was so supportive to Jake that night too.
Dave was such a great man, it's hard to know where to start when remembering him...
The first thing to mention has to be the way that he greated everyone with a smile. I can't remember a time that Dave didn't have a big smile for me when starting a conversation, and it always made me feel great because he was showing that he was happy to see me.
Another thing that really stood out to me was how much he genuinely cared about his friends. In a group setting which is where I would always see Dave, it is so easy to fall into the routine of catching up with all the people you haven't seen for a while. I could always tell that Dave genuinely was interested in what was new with me, even when it wasn't all that interesting. He always wished me good luck, and it was apparent it wasn't just because that is something you should say, he meant it.
There are so many other things about Dave that were great, but these were my two favorites. Certainly his example is a great lesson on life, what a great mentor to try and emulate.
I dropped of Katie today at school....on the way to drop off Caroline, she makes a statement. "Dad, I really like winter". I said, "why?". "Because Santa comes back every winter".
I broke down. I had to fight back tears saying she was right. Little does she know that this year he won't be coming in the way we all have become used 2.
WOW! The little ones say such amazing things, don't they?
I'd like to share a poem here that I wrote for my late husband, but which reminds me now of Santa Dave, too, because of the reference to snow, but also...well, you'll see when you read it...
Katie's statement about winter is what made me think of it.
Just a brief bit of background: this poem was inspired by my great-niece, who was six years old when her Uncle George (my late husband) died, and she took it quite hard. Earlier that year, she had been so sad when her dad pulled up all the tulips that were done blooming, even though she knew they would bloom again the next year.
My great-niece said so many profound things, in her grief, things that broke our hearts sometimes, but also things that were so helpful and so healing, coming from a little girl with a big heart.
What we know in our minds and what we know in our hearts are often not in sync - that comes in degrees, over time. And we CAN feel both - our grief that they are gone, and our joy that we knew and loved them - still love them!
I just remember meeting Santa Dave and him being so kind, and so happy to meet me & giving me a big hug, and the 4 or 5 times after that, he did the same thing & on the last time I saw him, he wished me a safe trip home, and said that I better come back for next year - again with a hug.
He was really neat. I've been loving all these memories that ya'll have been posting of him. I think my favorite tho - is the ducks.
I think it would be fitting, if anyone is interested, instead of doing a brick - maybe a bench or a 'santa chair' bench in a park - with a plaque to him.
From the sounds of it - he liked to sit and sleep in parks, what a great reminder of him, but a place for people to rest?
just something about our little girls and things in the minds of babes...
The kids were playing on the playground across the street from the funeral home Monday night. We were getting ready to leave and Jess and I walked over to get Whitney. She wanted me to come play or something and started calling me by my first name... "Jana! Jana come here" -it really took me off guard, and one of the other girls asked "you call your mom by her first name?" and she said "yeah, all the time"... I looked at another guy and Jessie and said "she never calls me by my first name!" ... I walk over to get her off the playground and we hold hands as we walk twords the cars... she whispers into my ear ... "I'm sorry mom, I called you by your first name because I didn't want to hurt Ali's feeling today"
:eek: :sheepish: :ooh: I was so proud of her thoughtfulness
she has been nothing but on her best behavior all week for me.
me2, thanks so much for posting that link to the Cooler Crew photos from Dave's camera.
I know what you mean about thinking to take the camera, because once its in someone else's hands, sometimes it never gets back to the family. I'm really glad you thought to take it for safekeeping.
I got to thinking about Dave's car - I wonder what happens in a situation like that? I was glad that it wasn't sitting in a metered spot downtown!
I know his car was locked - we checked when we left that night - I was thinking of calling this morning but I have not had time. I heard his sister was checking into it though.
I liked an idea Jess had that night that someone should send a Sainted to the Sainted/Tainted PP about how great the staff and restaurant was that night and everyone else. Any ideas about that or how to go about it?
I'd like to go - and I'd like to carpool - so if you have a seat for me rr please let me know
she whispers into my ear ... "I'm sorry mom, I called you by your first name because I didn't want to hurt Ali's feeling today"
Whitney is a pretty amazing kid. That was a super caring thing to do. I about fell off my chair crying when reading that. It was like I got smacked in the face with emotion. Very touching. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for also taking the time to post those pix from Dave's camera. Very nice. I liked this one of you two very much.
I was e-mailing with a Cooler Crew member who had the pleasure of meeting Santa Dave's friend, Jerry Maren, who played the spokesperson for the Lollipop Guild (center, in photo http://static.flickr.com/77/167367240_1f0fc005e7_o.jpg)
I got to thinking that someone should notify Mr. Maren of Dave's passing.
So, I did a search and found an e-mail address, and drafted the following e-mail:
"Dear Jerry,
If memory serves me correctly, you have a friend in
St. Paul, Minnesota - Dave Young. I am also a friend
of Dave's. My name is Diane ____ and I'm part of a
group he belonged to called The Cooler Crew.
We've had some bad news about Dave. He passed away on
Monday evening, May 14, 2007, in the company of good
friends, suddenly and without suffering.
I recall Dave speaking of you so many times. I just
wanted to be sure you would get word of his passing.
Please let me know if there is other information you
would find helpful or comforting.
With sincere sympathy in the loss of your friend,
-Diane ____ (Dave's friend, aka "Eags")
So, I posted the following to Terry and a few others, to let them know:
"I just did something rather unique. In fact, a friend got on IM just at that moment and asked me "what are you up to?"
I said, well you will never guess, but go ahead and try!
She couldn't guess.
But here is what I did!
I e-mailed Dave's friend, Jerry Marin, who played one of the munchkins in The Wizard of Oz. Thanks to some of the other Coolerheads for remembering enough info that we came up with the right name!
I found contact info, and sent an e-mail to something@somethingmunchkinland - that was part of the e-mail address! Now, only with Santa Dave as a friend would a person be likely to find themself with such interesting and unique connections!"
A few minutes later, I posted again, to Terry, et al:
"Now that I've had a moment to think about all that -
And please understand that I am having a Mary Tyler Moore moment here (as in the "Chuckles the Clown" episode), as I realized, in wonder and amazement......
I just e-mailed a munchkin to tell him that Santa died!?!
Does anyone else see the irony in that?" :eyeroll:
My inkjet printer stinks for printing pictures.
I have gathered just about everything here minus the pictures.
Can someone with a decent printer take some of the better ones and for sure the ones from Monday night and get them printed?
Not only did he have a Santa beard, but he had that magic twinkle in his eyes, and joyful caring spirit, let along as much stuff in his car as Santa has in his sleigh.
Anybody know anything about the funeral?
I expect, if it's like where my inlaws are, visitation maybe on Friday night and service and burial on Saturday. They will likely want to give all his friends in the cities a chance to attend if they would like.
http://www.dglobe.com/
http://www.dglobe.com/obituaries/
And one for the newspaper that covers Brewster:
http://tricountynewsmn.net/
Arrangements are pending at Benson Funeral Home, Worthington.
Posted by: jana
5/16/2007 2:52 PM
3323.1 Report as Violation
No rating
Dave Young
The Hitman of Comedy
By Scott Hansen
May 17,2007
Dave Young was known within the Twin Cities comedy community as “The Hitman of Twin Cities Comedy”. Jeff Gerbino and the small group of comedians that conceived the local comedy industry gave the name to him. The main reason for the nom du comedy was his act. Dave never had more than a few minutes of jokes. His act was made up of a few self-deprecating lines, an unsuccessful attempt to comment on a current event and then he would close with a joke that seldom worked.
Dave was not very funny. Dave did not have sharp material. Dave was nervous on stage and had a nervous tick that had him stuttering his punch lines.
Dave Young was one of my favorite comedians of all time.
Dave showed up at Mickey Finns in 1978. It was at just about the same time that I had begun my comedy career. I wasnÂ’t very funny either. Honestly, I didnÂ’t know what to think of this chubby little man with the scraggly beard that seemed so out of place. But it wasnÂ’t long before I discovered his charm. In fact it was a few short weeks later.
It was a tough night at Mickey Finns. The entire audience could fill one large table at a bingo hall. An N-43 would have excited the crowd more than my act. I was plugging away hard, but as a novice I had little to fall back upon comedically. Then, it happened. I heard it. It was a loud, gregarious, laugh that filled the small comedy club. The laugh was a little off the beat of my crudely timed act, but, it was a laugh. It was also the only laugh that I could elicit. The laugh was like a laugh track from I Love Lucy. It was there on every puchline. The laugh was perfect. The laugh was real. This laugh was so infectious, that soon the laughter became the focus of the show. I looked to see where it was coming from and there was this curmudgeon of a man, Dave Young.
I had watched Dave on stage earlier and loved his act. He dressed shabbily and had a balding head with long, white, hair that was sloppily and unevenly draped over his ears. Dave was clad in an incorrectly buttoned plaid shirt, and well worn, trousers that were conservatively estimated to be four sizes too small, that were fastened with what looked like a rope. He had tape on his glasses and a pen protector well ahead of their stylish genesis. Dave ascended the stage like a nerd gnome. His jokes were ill timed, poorly delivered and written with no structure. I thought to myself that this man was a tremendous character actor. I did not know that he was not acting. He was not a character comedian. He was a comedian that was an actual character.
On that difficult night in the impetus of my career, God sent Dave Young. I looked at this jovial man and suddenly my failure seemed of little importance. I paused and looked directly at Dave and began to “adlib”.
“Ladies and gentlemen…Dave Young…the professional audience member!”
Dave laughed loudly again and the audience applauded.
“Dave laughs at everything. No matter how bad the joke, Dave laughs at me.”
Dave laughed again and the audience laughed lightly.
“Dave, Two plus two equal four.”
Dave let loose. Dare I try again?
“Dave, four plus four equals eight.”
Dave laughed with epic grandeur and the audience laughter grew. I continued the banter.
“Dave, eight plus eight is sixteen.”
Dave did not laugh.
I said, “What’s wrong, Dave? Are you a critic now? “
The audience laughed. Then Dave said, “ No, I heard that one before!”
The audience laughed. Dave laughed. I laughed. It was the first time I ever laughed at myself on stage.
Dave never sought a real comedy career. Our careers went their separate ways. That was a good decision. But, Dave never ended his love of comedy and laughter. Until his final weeks, Dave was everywhere there was comedy. He would just show up. In my clubs, Dave was welcome at any show and I loved seeing Dave. Dave was there every time a star played my club or came in concert. Jay Leno, Jerry Seinfeld, Roseanne, Louie Anderson, Jeff Cesario all knew Dave. After the concert he would always go out to eat after the show with all the comedians.
Dave had become a success barometer for some of my favorite comedians. When Louie Anderson came to town a few years ago he asked, “Where’s Dave Young? It’s not a successful show unless Dave Young sneaks in!”
Dave showed up on Friday at 10:30 PM, just in time for the after show meal. Louie was relieved that the show had reached proper Dave Young status.
Last Saturday night I did a show at RJ’s Too in Princeton. Dave lived in Princeton. I didn’t call Dave to tell him. I assumed he would be at the show. I was certain that he would show up just a few minutes before show time… as usual. Then the club owner would tell me that a strange little man was at the box office. Dave would join the comedians and I would ask him how he was. “Fabulous!” was always the answer. I would ask Dave if he wanted to do a guest set. I knew that he did, because wrapped in his arms was a paper grocery bag, which held his props.
Dave would stammer his way through his five minutes and I would laugh at every one of his jokes. Lately, the rest of the audience did, too.
Regretfully, I didn’t call Dave and he didn’t show up at my show. As we packed our gear I remember telling comedian Duane Bjerke. “ I wonder what happened to Dave Young? It’s not like him to miss me when I’m in his hometown. Have I lost my popularity?”
I looked forward to DavesÂ’ appearances because Dave was a great balance for me in a difficult industry. This unlikely comedy gnome had a wonderful charm that has led me through some difficult times in comedy:times when I take this business too seriously. Dave Young was the first of a handful of people in comedy that have shown me that comedy is not about clothes, fancy cars, money ,Hollywood and fameÂ…comedy, is about the laughs.
I guess I took Dave for granted. I assumed he would always just walk in to my show. I wish he had last Saturday. I would have loved to have laughed with him one more time. I will miss “The Hitman Of Twin Cities Comedy”. So will scores of great comedians locally and nationwide that got to hear his beautiful laughter.
Posted by: Scott Hansen
He was a comedian that was an actual character.
Great tribute. DDY loved his comedy.
Santa Dave - 05/10/2007 - 01:43
SCD's Santa Dave
I said, “What’s wrong, Dave? Are you a critic now? “
The audience laughed. Then Dave said, “ No, I heard that one before!”
I can just hear Dave saying that! That cracked me up when I read that!! Thanks for posting that CM!
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
I have photos on my camera that I have not yet loaded and I have many photos from over the past years but I just havn't brought myself to sit longer and go through them without without blurry eyes...
heres the link to what our friend enjoyed:
... enjoy - they are in the order of when Dave took them (cept backwards-so that first photo was the last he took and the last on the 2nd page was the first he took)--- notice how the last photo he took of a cooler friend was Jake, the night he found the medallion and we all walked in the dark down to Hidden Falls. A night I was very glad I made my self go and was apart of his long treck through the snow and back up that hill... I was impressed that Dave was so supportive to Jake that night too.
God will I miss this man!
http://s199.photobucket.com/albums/aa192/me2minnesota/
That really hit me hard reading that :frown:
Dave was such a great man, it's hard to know where to start when remembering him...
The first thing to mention has to be the way that he greated everyone with a smile. I can't remember a time that Dave didn't have a big smile for me when starting a conversation, and it always made me feel great because he was showing that he was happy to see me.
Another thing that really stood out to me was how much he genuinely cared about his friends. In a group setting which is where I would always see Dave, it is so easy to fall into the routine of catching up with all the people you haven't seen for a while. I could always tell that Dave genuinely was interested in what was new with me, even when it wasn't all that interesting. He always wished me good luck, and it was apparent it wasn't just because that is something you should say, he meant it.
There are so many other things about Dave that were great, but these were my two favorites. Certainly his example is a great lesson on life, what a great mentor to try and emulate.
I broke down. I had to fight back tears saying she was right. Little does she know that this year he won't be coming in the way we all have become used 2.
I'd like to share a poem here that I wrote for my late husband, but which reminds me now of Santa Dave, too, because of the reference to snow, but also...well, you'll see when you read it...
Katie's statement about winter is what made me think of it.
Just a brief bit of background: this poem was inspired by my great-niece, who was six years old when her Uncle George (my late husband) died, and she took it quite hard. Earlier that year, she had been so sad when her dad pulled up all the tulips that were done blooming, even though she knew they would bloom again the next year.
My great-niece said so many profound things, in her grief, things that broke our hearts sometimes, but also things that were so helpful and so healing, coming from a little girl with a big heart.
What we know in our minds and what we know in our hearts are often not in sync - that comes in degrees, over time. And we CAN feel both - our grief that they are gone, and our joy that we knew and loved them - still love them!
So...here's the poem, this time for Santa Dave:
The Little Girl Knows
At the end of Spring,
When the tulips died,
And were all pulled up,
A little girl cried.
And later that summer,
A loved one died,
Too young, too soon,
And the little girl cried.
Then the winter snows,
Drifted softly in,
And covered the ground,
Where the tulips had been.
Through the long, cold nights,
Our tears would not cease,
Though both man and flower,
Were surely at peace.
But the little girl knows,
What the warm winds will bring,
When it wakens the spirits,
Of the tulips of Spring.
And the girl knows, too,
That our loved one still lives,
The memories of his love,
Are the gifts that he gives.
Yes, the little girl knows,
In our darkest hours,
Beneath the winter snows,
Wait the flowers.
©2003 - DJR
He was really neat. I've been loving all these memories that ya'll have been posting of him. I think my favorite tho - is the ducks.
From the sounds of it - he liked to sit and sleep in parks, what a great reminder of him, but a place for people to rest?
The kids were playing on the playground across the street from the funeral home Monday night. We were getting ready to leave and Jess and I walked over to get Whitney. She wanted me to come play or something and started calling me by my first name... "Jana! Jana come here" -it really took me off guard, and one of the other girls asked "you call your mom by her first name?" and she said "yeah, all the time"... I looked at another guy and Jessie and said "she never calls me by my first name!" ... I walk over to get her off the playground and we hold hands as we walk twords the cars... she whispers into my ear ... "I'm sorry mom, I called you by your first name because I didn't want to hurt Ali's feeling today"
:eek: :sheepish: :ooh: I was so proud of her thoughtfulness
she has been nothing but on her best behavior all week for me.
I know what you mean about thinking to take the camera, because once its in someone else's hands, sometimes it never gets back to the family. I'm really glad you thought to take it for safekeeping.
I got to thinking about Dave's car - I wonder what happens in a situation like that? I was glad that it wasn't sitting in a metered spot downtown!
Benson Funeral Home
507.376.4477
Friday May 25
Visitation 11:30 am to 1:30 pm
Service at 1:30 pm
:frown: ::: I can't go :::
I can drive and take 3 comfortably - PM me if you want...
I liked an idea Jess had that night that someone should send a Sainted to the Sainted/Tainted PP about how great the staff and restaurant was that night and everyone else. Any ideas about that or how to go about it?
I'd like to go - and I'd like to carpool - so if you have a seat for me rr please let me know
she whispers into my ear ... "I'm sorry mom, I called you by your first name because I didn't want to hurt Ali's feeling today"
Whitney is a pretty amazing kid. That was a super caring thing to do. I about fell off my chair crying when reading that. It was like I got smacked in the face with emotion. Very touching. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for also taking the time to post those pix from Dave's camera. Very nice. I liked this one of you two very much.